DOI Seite / Zitierlink:
https://doi.org/10.11588/diglit.45927#0102
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9. SCULPTURES FOUND IN THE BOULEUTERION (M. Aurenhammer - Th. Opper)
per body and head seem to have still existed.370 As far as one can tell, the body closely followed the Borghese
type.371 The ankle ring on the right leg of the Borghese statue was not represented.372 Also in contrast to the
Borghese statue, Lucius Verus was depicted with a long paludamentum that fell over his shoulders and back
and reached down to the calves. Remains of the paludamentum are visible behind the legs of the statue. The
direction of folds within the garment suggests that he clasped it with his missing right hand.373 The motif of the
left arm and hand is unclear. There are no marble struts on the left thigh that might give an indication of the
position of the left hand and any traces of an attribute that may have been visible on the plinth disappeared with
its now missing left corner. Other statues of this type show the left hand holding a spear or clasping a sheathed
sword and it is likely that Lucius Verus was represented here in a similar manner. Along the left leg the statue
was supported by a thick marble tree trunk. The trunk’s surface is rendered to imitate the rough, cracked texture
of bark, while the rim along its upper end is carved in a wave pattern, typical elements of statue supports from
the time of Hadrian onwards.374 Depending on the exact date of the sculpture, the missing head should have
shown Lucius Verus in his second or third portrait type.375 The sheer size of the statue perhaps suggests that he
was of a more mature age here and therefore represented in the third type, which has been connected with his
first consulship in A.D. 154.376 In either case, it should have worn the Attic helmet of the Ares Borghese type.
A number of portrait statues using the Ares Borghese type are preserved.377 It seems that the emperor
Hadrian, relatively early in his reign, was the first person to have been portrayed in this manner.378 Presenting
him as a living embodiment of Ares/Mars, this statuary type seems particularly appropriate for a symbolic
portrayal of the emperor as commander-in-chief of the armed forces. It thus provided a powerful alternative
to the more frequent, realistic portrait in military cuirass. As the statue of Lucius Verus and a few others show,
the type was later used for other male members of the imperial family, but it seems to have remained relatively
rare. It seems the more remarkable that Lucius Verus was honored in this fashion at Ephesos when he was still
a crown prince.379 Perhaps this might also suggest a date for the statue after his consulship in A.D. 154 at a time
when he did not yet fulfil a significant public role. The Borghese type was also used for private portraits, but
with a very different meaning.380
The technical treatment of the statue of Lucius Verus clearly shows that it was intended to fit into a specific
setting; T. Opper considers a shallow wall niche.381 To this end, the back of the sculpture had to be flattened and
1.97 m or thereabouts can be extrapolated.
370 For the fate of the different parts of the statue, see the catalog on sculp. 1.1 (chap. 9.5).
371 Cf. Furtwangler 1896, 43 note 1 no. 7.
372 The ankle ring appears to be unique to the Borghese statue, but may have been part of the original, cf. Freyer 1962, 211-226,
esp. 225-226.
373 There is no trace at all of the “object, a sceptre-staff [...] against his right thigh” mentioned by Vermeule III 2002, 329. The date
of A.D. 163 given by C. C. Vermeule is impossible, as the statue was dedicated before the death of Antoninus Pius in A.D. 161.
374 Cf. Muthmann 1951, 45.
375 Cf. Fittschen 1999, 130. In K. Fittschen’s typology, this would correspond to his types D or E: Fittschen 1999, 39-45
pl. 64-73.
376 For the date s. Fittschen 1999, 44-45 with note 256. In the Nymphaeum of Herodes Atticus at Olympia, thought to have been
dedicated in A.D. 153, Lucius Verus was represented in his second portrait type and the statue attributed to him is much smaller
than the one from Ephesos, Olympia, Museum A166, cf. Bol 1984, 159-164 fig. 72 pl. 22-23.
377 The following portrait statues and heads of members of the imperial family based on the Ares Borghese type are currently known:
Rome, Museo Capitolino 634: Hadrian. Fittschen - Zanker 1994, 48-49 no. 48 pl. 53; London, British Museum (see sculp. 1.1):
Lucius Verus; Rome, Vatican, magazine 4093: Marcus Aurelius. Kaschnitz-Weinberg 1937, 284 no. 685 pL 108; Fittschen -
Zanker 1994, 49 note 5; Rome, Palazzo dei Conservatori 778: Statue. Bergmann 1977, 45; Wrede 1981, 270 no. 198. The statue
has been attributed to various 3rd-century emperors in the past. It is perhaps more likely that it represents a private individual, such
as a general.
378 Hadrian’s pointed use of this martial imagery stands in clear contrast to the current prevailing notion of him as an “intellectual”.
The earliest preserved example seems to be an early Hadrianic statue in the Capitoline Museum using the Chiaramonti 392 portrait
type of ca. A.D. 120-130, Rome, Museo Capitolino 634, cf. Fittschen - Zanker 1994, 48-49 no. 48 pl. 53.
379 Fittschen 1971, 225 note 45.
380 It seems that in private portraiture the Ares Borghese type was almost always linked in a group with the female type of the Venus of
Capua to portray married couples. See most recently, Kousser 2007, 673-691 for the Augustan prototype and the Antonine portrait
groups.
381 The statue plinth has a depth of 49.5 cm. The trimming of the statue’s back, meant to ensure that it did not extend beyond the back
end of the plinth at any point, suggests a depth of the niche of not more than 50 cm. - L. Bier placed Lucius Verus’ statue in his
9. SCULPTURES FOUND IN THE BOULEUTERION (M. Aurenhammer - Th. Opper)
per body and head seem to have still existed.370 As far as one can tell, the body closely followed the Borghese
type.371 The ankle ring on the right leg of the Borghese statue was not represented.372 Also in contrast to the
Borghese statue, Lucius Verus was depicted with a long paludamentum that fell over his shoulders and back
and reached down to the calves. Remains of the paludamentum are visible behind the legs of the statue. The
direction of folds within the garment suggests that he clasped it with his missing right hand.373 The motif of the
left arm and hand is unclear. There are no marble struts on the left thigh that might give an indication of the
position of the left hand and any traces of an attribute that may have been visible on the plinth disappeared with
its now missing left corner. Other statues of this type show the left hand holding a spear or clasping a sheathed
sword and it is likely that Lucius Verus was represented here in a similar manner. Along the left leg the statue
was supported by a thick marble tree trunk. The trunk’s surface is rendered to imitate the rough, cracked texture
of bark, while the rim along its upper end is carved in a wave pattern, typical elements of statue supports from
the time of Hadrian onwards.374 Depending on the exact date of the sculpture, the missing head should have
shown Lucius Verus in his second or third portrait type.375 The sheer size of the statue perhaps suggests that he
was of a more mature age here and therefore represented in the third type, which has been connected with his
first consulship in A.D. 154.376 In either case, it should have worn the Attic helmet of the Ares Borghese type.
A number of portrait statues using the Ares Borghese type are preserved.377 It seems that the emperor
Hadrian, relatively early in his reign, was the first person to have been portrayed in this manner.378 Presenting
him as a living embodiment of Ares/Mars, this statuary type seems particularly appropriate for a symbolic
portrayal of the emperor as commander-in-chief of the armed forces. It thus provided a powerful alternative
to the more frequent, realistic portrait in military cuirass. As the statue of Lucius Verus and a few others show,
the type was later used for other male members of the imperial family, but it seems to have remained relatively
rare. It seems the more remarkable that Lucius Verus was honored in this fashion at Ephesos when he was still
a crown prince.379 Perhaps this might also suggest a date for the statue after his consulship in A.D. 154 at a time
when he did not yet fulfil a significant public role. The Borghese type was also used for private portraits, but
with a very different meaning.380
The technical treatment of the statue of Lucius Verus clearly shows that it was intended to fit into a specific
setting; T. Opper considers a shallow wall niche.381 To this end, the back of the sculpture had to be flattened and
1.97 m or thereabouts can be extrapolated.
370 For the fate of the different parts of the statue, see the catalog on sculp. 1.1 (chap. 9.5).
371 Cf. Furtwangler 1896, 43 note 1 no. 7.
372 The ankle ring appears to be unique to the Borghese statue, but may have been part of the original, cf. Freyer 1962, 211-226,
esp. 225-226.
373 There is no trace at all of the “object, a sceptre-staff [...] against his right thigh” mentioned by Vermeule III 2002, 329. The date
of A.D. 163 given by C. C. Vermeule is impossible, as the statue was dedicated before the death of Antoninus Pius in A.D. 161.
374 Cf. Muthmann 1951, 45.
375 Cf. Fittschen 1999, 130. In K. Fittschen’s typology, this would correspond to his types D or E: Fittschen 1999, 39-45
pl. 64-73.
376 For the date s. Fittschen 1999, 44-45 with note 256. In the Nymphaeum of Herodes Atticus at Olympia, thought to have been
dedicated in A.D. 153, Lucius Verus was represented in his second portrait type and the statue attributed to him is much smaller
than the one from Ephesos, Olympia, Museum A166, cf. Bol 1984, 159-164 fig. 72 pl. 22-23.
377 The following portrait statues and heads of members of the imperial family based on the Ares Borghese type are currently known:
Rome, Museo Capitolino 634: Hadrian. Fittschen - Zanker 1994, 48-49 no. 48 pl. 53; London, British Museum (see sculp. 1.1):
Lucius Verus; Rome, Vatican, magazine 4093: Marcus Aurelius. Kaschnitz-Weinberg 1937, 284 no. 685 pL 108; Fittschen -
Zanker 1994, 49 note 5; Rome, Palazzo dei Conservatori 778: Statue. Bergmann 1977, 45; Wrede 1981, 270 no. 198. The statue
has been attributed to various 3rd-century emperors in the past. It is perhaps more likely that it represents a private individual, such
as a general.
378 Hadrian’s pointed use of this martial imagery stands in clear contrast to the current prevailing notion of him as an “intellectual”.
The earliest preserved example seems to be an early Hadrianic statue in the Capitoline Museum using the Chiaramonti 392 portrait
type of ca. A.D. 120-130, Rome, Museo Capitolino 634, cf. Fittschen - Zanker 1994, 48-49 no. 48 pl. 53.
379 Fittschen 1971, 225 note 45.
380 It seems that in private portraiture the Ares Borghese type was almost always linked in a group with the female type of the Venus of
Capua to portray married couples. See most recently, Kousser 2007, 673-691 for the Augustan prototype and the Antonine portrait
groups.
381 The statue plinth has a depth of 49.5 cm. The trimming of the statue’s back, meant to ensure that it did not extend beyond the back
end of the plinth at any point, suggests a depth of the niche of not more than 50 cm. - L. Bier placed Lucius Verus’ statue in his
