Roman Emperor (Julius Caesar)
Mino da Fiesole
(Italian, 1429–1484)
around 1455
Object PlaceFlorence, Italy
Medium/TechniqueStone; Marble
Dimensions40 x 34 x 7.6 cm (15 3/4 x 13 3/8 x 3 in.)
Credit LineGift of Quincy Adams Shaw through Quincy Adams Shaw, Jr., and Mrs. Marian Shaw Haughton
Accession number17.1471
On View
On viewClassificationsSculpture
Collections
Crowned with laurel and dressed in armor, this unidentified Roman emperor's face is shown in pure profile while his shoulders twist, adding a sense of three-dimensionality and movement to the figure. The relief is a reminder of the importance of ancient models for Renaissance Florentines. Giovanni de'Medici, for example, commissioned reliefs of the Roman emperors as decorations for the family palace.
ProvenanceQuincy Adams Shaw (b. 1825 - d. 1908), Boston; 1917, gift of Quincy Adams Shaw, through Quincy Adams Shaw Jr., and Mrs. Marian Shaw Haughton, to the MFA. (Accession Date: March 29, 1917)
late 14th century
