Marble portrait of Tiberius
Roman, about AD 4-14
From Italy
A flattering portrait of the 46 year old heir to the imperial
throne
The head, set into a modern bust, shows the image of the future
emperor Tiberius (reigned AD 14-37). It was commissioned in AD 4 to
mark his adoption as the successor of the emperor Augustus, his
step-father. At the time Tiberius would have been forty-six years
old, but is shown in the portrait as much younger.
The intrigues of Livia, Tiberius' mother, were probably a major
factor in his rise to power, combined with the terrible health and
unfortunate accidents which befell all the other potential heirs of
Augustus. Tiberius was a successful general in campaigns against
Persia and along the Danube and Rhine, but lacked Augustus' natural
rapport with the Senate, making his period as emperor politically
turbulent. His reliance upon the ambitious and brutal Sejanus, the
head of the Praetorian guard (the imperial bodyguards) caused
particular concern, as did the emperor's supposed sexual excesses
at the Villa Iovis on the island of Capri.
S. Walker, Greek and Roman portraits (London, The British Museum Press, 1995)
S. Walker, Roman art (London, 1991)