Roman torso of a naked male, Eastern Empire, c.2nd century AD
Basalt
Height 96cm, width 45cm, depth 35cm
9773
Sold
The striking, over-lifesize figure rests his weight on his left leg causing the hip to jut out, the right leg slightly forward, the right shoulder higher, as though the arm were raised. The robust musculature is powerfully modelled, with well-formed pectorals, pronounced iliac crest and prominent buttocks with side dimples. Damage to the pubic area, minor surface wear, two patches of restoration to the back and one beneath the right pectoral associated with the horizontal break around the ribcage restored.
Provenance
Mathias Komor, New York, USAWilliam Froelich, New York, USA; acquired from the above 10th September 1968
Private collection, Switzerland
Toledo Museum of Art, USA; acquired from Charles Ede in 2017
Literature
Compare i marmi colorati della Roma imperiale (Rome, 2002), p. 305-307 for an example identified as a giant, the stone of which was quarried near Aphrodisias in Asia Minor and used to create this and many other sculptures which decorated the Villa di Valdetorres (excavated 1978-1982). Also compare a statue of Herakles with strong musculature and no pubic hair; Nikolaos Kaltsas, Sculpture in the National Archaeological Museum, Athens (Athens, 2002), p. 264, no. 553. A sculpture from western Asia Minor has well defined musculature, exhibiting the strength of a man, yet also lacks pubic hair, and has been described as a Young God, Hero or athlete; Mary B. Comstock and Cornelius C. Vermeil, Sculpture in Stone: the Greek, Roman and Etruscan Collections of the Museum of Fine Art Boston (Boston, 1976), p. 99, no. 153
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