On view
Ancient Mediterranean Art
Torso of an emperor in armor,
ca. 50–100 CE
Roman
Roman Imperial Period, Flavian Period, 69–96 CE, ca. 30 BCE–476 CE
y1984-2
Despite the damage to this statue, the figure is easily identifiable as an emperor through his elaborate armor and the quality of the carving. The reliefs on the breastplate include a frontal face of Medusa and winged Victories erecting a tropaion, or trophy, by nailing armor to a tree trunk. Trophies marked the spot where enemies retreated in battle and often incorporated their armor, like the non-Roman hexagonal shield seen here. Traces of ancient repairs suggest that this monumental statue was at one point knocked down and then re-erected, presumably with a new head. These transformations often took place when the memory of an individual was officially erased in an act of damnatio memoriae, or the damnation of memory, which occurred after the deaths of reviled emperors such as Nero (died 68 CE) and Domitian (died 91 CE), both of whom have been suggested as possible identifications for this individual.
Information
Title
Torso of an emperor in armor
Dates
ca. 50–100 CE
Medium
White marble with gray veining
Dimensions
125.7 x 64.8 x 47.5 cm, weight: 898.1 kg (49 1/2 x 25 1/2 x 18 11/16 in., 1980 lb.)
Credit Line
Museum purchase, Caroline G. Mather Fund
Object Number
y1984-2
Place Made
Roman Empire
Culture
Period
Type
Materials
Purchased by the Museum from Edward Merrin in 1984
- Egyptian, Middle Eastern, Greek, Etruscan and Roman antiquities, also art reference books: including an Egyptian red jasper nlay in the form of a profile head and arm ...: which will be sold by auction, (London: Sotheby's, 1980)., lot no .207
- "Acquisitions of the Art Museum 1984," Record of the Art Museum, Princeton University 44, no. 1 (1985): p. 24-52., p. 48 (illus.)
- Richard A. Gergel, "An allegory of Imperial victory on a cuirassed statue of Domitian", Record of the Art Museum, Princeton University 45, no. 1 (1986): p. 2–15., p. 2-5, figs. 1-4; p. 8-9, figs. 7-9; p. 12-13, figs. 14-18
- Richard Gergel, "A Julio-Claudian torso in the Walters Art Gallery", Journal of the Walters Art Gallery 45 (1987): p. 19-31., p. 30, note 2
- Richard Gergel, "A Late Flavian cuirassed torso in the J. Paul Getty Museum", J. Paul Getty Museum journal 16 (1988): p. 5-24., p. 11-14; p. 10-11; figs. 2a-21 (Illus.)
- J. Michael Padgett, ed., Roman sculpture in The Art Museum, Princeton University, (Princeton, NJ: Art Museum, Princeton University, 2001)., p. 165-167; cat. no. 47
- Sheramy D. Bundrick; Eric R. Varner, From Caligula to Constantine: tyranny and transformation in Roman portraiture, (Atlanta, GA: Michael C. Carlos Museum, 2001). , p. 162-163; cat. no. 36
- Princeton University Art Museum: Handbook of the Collection (New Haven, CT: Yale University Press, 2007), p. 265 (illus.)
- Princeton University Art Museum: Handbook of the Collections (Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Art Museum, 2013), p. 317
