Roman bust
- Gallery: Room 70
- Culture: Roman
- Date: 117-138 (circa)
- Object type: bust
- Materials: marble
- Museum number: 1805,0703.94
- 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
Before you stands a marble bust of the Emperor Hadrian. His upper body is carved in a naturalistic style, with the chest left exposed. This Roman sculpture presents Hadrian in a heroic and lifelike manner, emphasizing his strength and dignity.
The style is known as the 'Rollockenfrisur,' a classic hairstyle favored for imperial portraits. Created in Hadrian’s lifetime—circa 140 AD—the bust reflects the artistic standards of Roman portraiture, capturing both individuality and imperial authority.
Acquired in 1805, it entered the museum’s collection from the Townley collection, a renowned assemblage of ancient marbles. Hadrian's likeness has been preserved with fine attention to detail, showing the confident gaze and regal bearing that symbolized leadership in ancient Rome.
This work provides a glimpse into how emperors were represented during the peak of the Roman Empire—less as rulers and more as figures of both human and divine presence.
See it in person
Roman bust is on display in Room 70 at the British Museum on Great Russell Street, Bloomsbury, London — free to enter. Choose British Museum on audioguide.london and take a photo of it to hear this free audio guide in six languages — no app download needed.
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