Over 250 portraits of Augustus, including full-length statues, have been identified in collections around the world. When he died in 14 CE, Augustus would have been seventy-seven years old, but no portraits of him in old age are currently known. The public image of Augustus was not allowed to grow old with him. His was a message of eternal youth and regeneration.
This bust of ‘Young Augustus’ is likely to be a nineteenth-century copy of a marble portrait head, possibly one in the collection of the British Museum (1873,0820.729), which was found in Rome and has been dated to between 27 BCE and 14 CE.
The head has been identified as probably being the youthful Augustus because of the distinctive ‘fork’ in the curls on his forehead and his prominent ears. The flawless skin is youthful, yet his serious countenance is dignified. This is a benevolent emperor, calm and benign, a portent of the wise ruler to come.
