**Originally Listed At $2500**

Roman, Imperial Period, ca. 1st to 3rd century CE. The upper part of a torso from a near-lifesize limestone sculpture of a togatus, a Roman citizen wearing a toga. The neck is exposed above a tunic that is visible in a deep V. Around that, the folds of the garment are carefully carved, with the hands emerging from underneath what looks like heavy fabric to hold a scroll. The artist has taken care to depict the fingers of the hands in a lifelike manner where they grip the scroll. The clothing and the scroll mark the subject of this statue - which must have once been several feet tall when fully intact - as an elite, educated person in Roman society. Size: 17.5" W x 14" H (44.4 cm x 35.6 cm); 18.2" H (46.2 cm) on included custom stand.

The wearing of the toga in Imperial Rome dates to the time of Emperor Augustus (reign 27 BCE to 14 CE), when he revived an ancient costume and made it required attire in the Forum. The scroll that the man holds signifies his access to written documents, while his toga includes him in the public life of the Empire. The full sculpture would have had at its feet a cylindrical box for holding scrolls, identifying him as a man engaged in public business. This sculpture may have once graced a tomb, or may have been erected in a public space to commemorate a notable figure.

Provenance: private East Coast, USA collection

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#129371

Piece is a fragment as shown. What remains is worn, with encrustation and weathering on surfaces. Nice remaining form.