Cameo: Julio-Claudian Imperial Portrait

Description

This fragment of a cameo depicts a man wearing a laurel crown and facing right. Roman cameo gems were made by carving through layers of banded semiprecious stones to create an image, here a portrait in off-white with a tan background. Scholars have identified this portrait as various members of the Julio-Claudian imperial family based on the laurel crown and style of the portrait.

The close-cropped wavy hair, thinly arched brow, aquiline nose, and rounded chin are similar to depictions of many Julio-Claudian princes and emperors who can only be differentiated by inscriptions. The imperial family was represented with very similar features to support a unified dynastic image.

Provenance

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Cameo: Julio-Claudian Imperial Portrait

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30 BCE–54 CE

Accession Number

1991.154

Medium

travertine

Dimensions

Overall: 4.6 x 6.4 cm (1 13/16 x 2 1/2 in.)

Classification

Sculpture

Museum

The Cleveland Museum of Art

Cleveland, United States

Credit Line

John L. Severance Fund