Getty Museum

Head of Bacchus (71.AB.447)

Date

1st century A.D.

Medium

Bronze; copper lips

Culture

Roman

Department

Sculpture

Institution

Getty Museum

Although only the lower portion of the head survives today, this fragment comes from an elaborate half life-size statue of Bacchus, the Roman god of wine. The jagged edge of the neck shows where the head broke from the body. The now-missing top of the head was cast separately and fitted into the lower part. The head depicts Bacchus as a young man with long, wavy hair pulled back and originally knotted into a bun at the back of his neck. A headband worn around his forehead holds back his hair, and also hides the seam where the two pieces of the head joined. The head as originally cast was a relatively simple piece, but the unknown artist added many colorful details to enliven the work. The heavily incised line around the lips suggests that they were made separately of copper and inserted into the head. The eyes were inlaid with a contrasting material. A silver inset with a spiral and ray pattern decorated the god's copper headband. The triangular indentation on the back of the neck marks the spot where Bacchus's separately made bun of hair was attached to the head, and residue of lead and tin under each ear may be traces of solder for long locks of hair added on either side of the bun.

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