This head, which depicts a man crowned with a wreath, might be a portrait of an emperor. His facial features, including almond-shaped eyes, tight-lipped mouth, faint mustache, and neck whiskers, as well as his triangular head, which tapers toward the chin, suggest his possible identification as Gallienus (r. A.D. 253–68). This type of wreath, which is composed of grape vines and ivy, was worn by Dionysus, the Greek god of wine and theater. Emperors frequently associated themselves with gods by adopting their attributes, or symbols, as numerous emperors portrayed themselves in the guise of Jupiter (the Greek Zeus), the supreme god of the pantheon.
Date
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Art Institute of Chicago, “Acquisitions,” Art Institute of Chicago Annual Report, 1974–75 (Art Institute of Chicago, 1975), pp. 7 (ill.), 31.
Cornelius C. Vermeule III, Greek and Roman Sculpture in America: Masterpieces in Public Collections in the United States and Canada (Berkely: University of California Press; Los Angeles: J. Paul Getty Museum, 1981), p. 367, fig. 318.
Karen B. Alexander, “From Plaster to Stone: Ancient Art at the Art Institute of Chicago,” in Karen Manchester, Recasting the Past: Collecting and Presenting Antiquities at the Art Institute of Chicago (Chicago: Art Institute of Chicago; New Haven: Yale University Press, 2012), pp. 32; 39, no. 134.
Katharine A. Raff, “Cat. 15 Portrait Head of a Man: Curatorial Entry,” in Roman Art at the Art Institute of Chicago (Art Institute of Chicago, 2016).
Rachel C. Sabino, with contributions by Lorenzo Lazzarini, “Cat. 15 Portrait Head of a Man: Technical Report,” in Roman Art at the Art Institute of Chicago (Art Institute of Chicago, 2016).
Art Institute of Chicago, Classical Art from the Permanent Collection, February 1989–February 17, 1990.
Art Institute of Chicago, Of Gods and Glamour: The Mary and Michael Jaharis Galleries of Greek, Roman, and Byzantine Art, Gallery 152, November 11, 2012-June 25, 2015; February 16, 2016 - July 12, 2018.
Art Institute of Chicago, Dionysos Unmasked: Ancient Sculpture and Early Prints, Gallery 150 and 154, July 31, 2015-February 15, 2016.
Heinz Herzer and co., Munich, Germany by March 28, 1975 [receipt in curatorial file]; sold to the Art Institute of Chicago, 1975.
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