Before the Roman Empire was united by Constantine the Great in 324 C.E., it was ruled by a tetrarchy, a form of government in which power was distributed among two senior Augusti emperors and two junior Caesars. As a result, honorific statues like this one are symbolic in nature: rather than depicting a specific ruler, the sculpture embodies the collective power of the empire. This figure likely represents an emperor with the rank of Augustus, distinguishable by his beard and the staff in his right hand, a marker of high authority.
Details
- Title: Tetrarch
- Date: c. 3rd century A.D.
- Medium: Limestone
- Dimensions: 76 x 24 x 20 in. (193.0 x 61.0 x 50.8 cm)
- Credit Line: Norton Simon Art Foundation, from the Estate of Jennifer Jones Simon
- Accession Number: M.2010.1.101.S
- Copyright: Norton Simon Art Foundation
Object Information
To Do Battle: Conflict, Struggle, and Symbol in Art
- Norton Simon Museum, 2002-03-08 to 2002-07-08
- Campbell, Sara, Collector Without Walls: Norton Simon and His Hunt for the Best, 2010, cat. 1394 p. 402
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