About This Artwork

Early Byzantine, Constantinople or Greece (?)

Portrait Head of a Young Woman, Late 4th century, in imitation of 2nd century Roman style

Marble
22 x 18 x 20.6 cm (8 7/8 x 7 x 8 in.)
Edward E. Ayer Endowment in Memory of Charles L. Hutchinson, 1960.64

This elegant portrait is the intentional likeness of a young woman in her early twenties who had a delicate brow, high cheekbones, wide-set eyes, a bow-shaped mouth, and a prominent chin. Her long tresses are arranged in an elaborate hairstyle, fashionable at different times during the imperial period, in which the hair was parted in the center, combed in waves over the forehead, and plaited into braids that were artfully wrapped around the head like a turban. The predilection of Roman artists for reviving styles of the past--from both their own and that of the Greeks--sometimes makes it difficult to determine when a sculpture was carved, as is the case with this one. Because the sculpture exhibits features that are characteristics of different stylistic periods, dates ranging from the mid-2nd to the end of the 4th century have been suggested.