Mask of a Young Person with an Unusual Hairstyle in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, May 2008

Mask of a Young Person with an Unusual Hairstyle
ca. 120-150 AD
Plaster, paint

Accession # 00.2.21

The face- broad at the temple, with slightly modeled eyes, an arched nose, and a delicate smile- seems to be that of a young person. Tight curls cover the top of the individual's head, while longer locks flow out onto the support on which the head rests. No earrings or other jewelry are worn that would make a female gender identification likely so it seems probable that the mask represents a young man who wears his hair longer in the back.

Text from the Metropolitan Museum of Art label.