![]() ![]() 7 Imperial PortraitsĪfter he assumed power as the first emperor, Augustus employed artists to promote political and social goals by commissioning idealized portraits of himself and his family that show them not simply as living people but as the inspired descendants of a god, Divus Julius. 41–54), as his uncle and the successor of Augustus. Willfully forgotten during the brief reign of his young nephew Gaius (Caligula r. 37–41), Tiberius was rehabilitated by the next emperor, Claudius (r. A.D. The rumors of drunkenness and debauchery that make sensational reading in the later Annals of Tacitus and biographies of Suetonius have been somewhat discredited. Moving from villa to luxurious villa on the island of Capri for the last eleven years of his life, he surrounded himself with a few close friends, philosophers, and soldiers. The paucity of monuments from his more than twenty-two years of rule is notable-Tiberius completed buildings begun by Augustus, but the only new commission was the grand temple of Divus Augustus in Rome, which was not dedicated until after his own death. Despair and fear of assassination drove him to leave Rome in A.D. 6 The epithet was based on a personality apparently paralyzed by anxiety of doing the wrong thing as he endeavored to continue the policies of Augustus. 23, so young enough to know people who remembered Tiberius, called him “the gloomiest of men” ( tristissimus hominum). 4, at the age of forty-five, Tiberius was formally adopted by Augustus into the Julian family (gens Iulia), becoming Tiberius Julius Caesar and heir to sole rule of the empire. He married Augustus’s only child, Julia the Elder, in 11 B.C. He was born into the patrician Claudian family ( Claudia) as the older son of Augustus’s wife, Livia Drusilla, by her first marriage. 14–37) was the stepson of the first Roman emperor, Augustus (r. 27 B.C.–A.D. The jeweler aligned the eye and ear horizontally and the base of the throat, ear, and crown of the head vertically the result is a somewhat downward angle of the head and gaze compared to profile portraits on coins. Based on other gem and coin portraits, the jeweler or his patron knew that the oak wreath had lost its ribbon, tied in a looped bow with streamers, so white enamel was set into the mount to complete the image-although the ribbons should trail farther down the neck. It must be presumed that the Renaissance metalsmith designed the gold capsule to fit snugly around the extant fragment, but it cannot be ruled out that some of the surviving background may have been removed or modified to create a more regular, compact presentation within the setting. ![]() 4 The head is a fragment, originally part of a larger cameo, perhaps a gem with only the portrait or perhaps a composition of multiple figures. 3 It was carved from the upper white layer of a hardstone with horizontal brown and white bands so that the head stands out against the darker background. The portrait is of extraordinarily high quality and remarkably well preserved. The only part of this cameo that survives is the head and part of the neck. Identification as Tiberius is secured by the overlapping rows of comma-shaped locks of hair combed over the forehead and across the neck. The small mouth with its protruding upper lip, pointed chin, and wide eyes are distinctive facial features. On the cameo portrait, the beak-like nose and the noticeable furrows around the nose and mouth are hints of maturity, even age. The symbolism recognizes that Tiberius owed his elevation to Augustus. The inscriptions emphasize Tiberius’s relationships to two new gods, Augustus-his adoptive father-and Julius Caesar-his adoptive grandfather through Augustus. Both men wear the corona triumphalis, the gold laurel crown awarded for military victories over enemies of Rome. 14, soon after Augustus died and was deified by decree of the Senate (an honor symbolized by the star above his head), his portrait is on the obverse and a somewhat smaller portrait of the new ruler Tiberius is on the reverse ( fig. The Art Institute’s cameo profile portrait conforms to this tradition, initiated by the divinely youthful portraits of his stepfather and predecessor Augustus. Tiberius was fifty-five years old when he became the second Roman emperor, but his portraits always depict a younger man. ![]() The Art Institute of Chicago, gift of Marilynn B. Inscription on mount: ΑΕΙΘΑΛΕΣ (evergreen) 1 Fragment of a Cameo Portraying Emperor TiberiusĬameo: Roman, A.D. ![]()
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