Bronze Head of Hadrian
- Audio guide stop: 452
- Gallery: Room 49
- Culture: Romano-British
- Date: 117-138
- Object type: statue
- Materials: copper alloy
- Museum number: 1848,1103.1
- Museum: The British Museum
- Collection record: British Museum website
- Image © The Trustees of the British Museum, shared under a CC BY-NC-SA 4.0 licence.
Listen to the free audio guide
About this object
This is a bronze head of Emperor Hadrian, dating to the years he ruled Britain—117 to 138 AD. The head was once part of a larger statue, about 1¼ times life-size, and shows Hadrian in his early thirties. You can see his moustache and the beginnings of a beard, along with a distinct facial style. The hair is intricately detailed with curling patterns, while the beard appears delicate and lightly carved.
This is one of only a few bronze portraits of Hadrian to survive from ancient times. It was originally displayed in a public place, likely in Roman London, perhaps to mark his visit to the region when he ordered the famous wall built. The bronze has a high copper content—over 60%—with tin and lead, which helped strengthen the metal.
The statue was damaged, hacked from its body, and has hair missing on one side and a crack running across the face. Still, it’s a rare and finely cast example of Roman portraiture in Britain.
See it in person
Bronze Head of Hadrian is on display in Room 49 at the British Museum on Great Russell Street, Bloomsbury, London — free to enter. Choose British Museum on audioguide.london and type its audio guide stop number, 452, from the gallery label, or take a photo of it, to hear this free audio guide in six languages — no app download needed.
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