Funerary Relief of a Priest from Palmyra in the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts, June 2018

Funerary Relief of a Priest (Primary Title)

Unknown (Artist)

Date: ca. 150-200

Culture: Roman (Palmyrene)

Category: Sculpture

Sculpture Medium: limestone

Collection: Ancient Art

Geography: Palmyrene

Dimensions: Overall: 21 × 16 1/2 × 10 1/4 in. (53.34 × 41.91 × 26.035 cm)

Object Number: 55.12

Palmyra, located in modern Syria, was a wealthy city on the eastern frontier of the Roman Empire. Palmyrene funerary portraits reflect the merging of Near Eastern artistic conventions (e.g., an emphasis on frontality and stiff poses) with the naturalism of Graeco-Roman portraiture. These reliefs decorated small compartments (cubicula) inside tombs.


The high, cylindrical hat is decorated with a jeweled wreath and identifies the man as a priest.


Text from: www.vmfa.museum/piction/6027262-213929753