IMAGE DETAILS

Dei Bardi Art

Marcus Aurelius (121-180 AD)
Inspired by the Ancient Roman Type III bust of the Emperor
Northern Italy, late 16th century
Marble
H 22.5 x W 16 x D 11 cm
H 35 cm (with red marble base)
Provenance: private collection, South of France

Carved in Northern Italy in the late 16th century, this refined marble head portrays Marcus Aurelius, revered as the emblematic 'philosopher emperor'. Deliberately modeled on the ancient Roman Type III portrait created at the outset of his reign (161–180 AD), it reflects the Renaissance passion for reviving imperial imagery.

Its intimate scale points to a cultivated humanist milieu - likely a private studiolo or collector’s cabinet. Responding to antiquarian collecting and humanist scholarship, the sculptor reinterprets the imperial model as an exemplum virtutis for early modern audiences.

Throughout the 16th and 17th centuries, scholars and collectors, deeply engaged with ancient texts and material remains, regarded imperial portraiture as a privileged vehicle of moral exemplarity and aesthetic perfection.