Two portraits of Agrippa Postumus in the British Museum

Bibliographic Data

ID12374784
AuthorsMiles Russell (0000-0001-9092-0860, Bournemouth University, corresponding author), Harry Manley (0000-0001-9533-9207, Bournemouth University)
Year2021
Volume35
Issue1
Pages322-338
Publication date2021-10-26
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueJournal of Roman Archaeology (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 1047-7594 • E-ISSN: 2331-5709
PublisherCambridge University Press (CUP) (PUBLISHER)
DOI10.1017/s1047759421000519
OpenAlexW3210261237
LanguageEN
References cited22

Two damaged and partially restored Roman portraits in the collection of the British Museum, previously identified as either the emperor Caligula or an unknown “Julio-Claudian prince,” are here reassessed and identified as Agrippa Postumus, the youngest grandson and adopted heir of Augustus. The first portrait, from southern Britain, may have come from a temple dedicated to the worship of the Julio-Claudian house, while the second was probably part of an equestrian group standing outside the Aedes Castoris in Rome. This is a significant reinterpretation, providing potential evidence not only for links between Rome's first family and the rulers of a distant client kingdom, but also for the framing of imperial power and the uncertain nature of the Augustan succession in the early years of the 1st c. CE

Ancient history · Art · Art history · Emperor · Portrait · Reinterpretation · Theology · Worship · Classical Antiquity Studies · Classical Studies and Legal History · Historical and Religious Studies of Rome · History · Philosophy

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