Marble Head of Homer in the Boston Museum of Fine Arts, January 2018

Homer

Roman

Late Republican or Imperial Period

late 1st century B.C. or 1st century A.D.

Medium/Technique Marble (probably from Mt. Pentelikon near Athens)

Dimensions Height: 41cm (16 1/8 in.); length (of face): 21 cm ( 8 1/4 in.)

Credit Line: Henry Lillie Pierce Fund

Accession Number: 04.13

Collections: Ancient Greece and Rome

Classifications: Sculpture


Homer, the blind poet credited with writing the Iliad and the Odyssey, was a legendary figure even in Classical Greece. It is unclear whether Homer even existed and, if so, when he lived; the most likely theory argues for the eighth century B.C. In the early fifth century B.C., artists began to invent a likeness of Homer. By the Hellenistic period, known for an interest in representing unique individuals, imaginary portraits of the poet took on a recognizable form, known today in numerous extant versions. Among them, this head, sculpted by an artist of the early Roman period, is a masterpiece. Marks on the neck indicate that it may once have been inserted into a life-size seated statue, probably as part of a gallery of famous men-mainly poets, playwrights, and philosophers-often found in libraries and gardens, both civic and private.

Intricate, deep carving, especially pronounced in the dense beard and hair, arched eyebrows, and furrowed face, conveys intensity and passion and evokes the baroque style of sculpture that originated in the city of Pergamon in the second century B.C. The band that runs around Homer's head is a sign of his poetic prowess; by the time this sculpture was made, literary recitation was a competitive exercise rewarded with fillets like this one. Homer's legendary blindness, implied here by his deeply lidded eyes and raised brow, was often a characteristic of seers. The advanced age of the bard, expressed through his balding head, sinewy neck, and copious wrinkles, is meant to under-score his wisdom as well as his connection to the distant past-Homer's works provided a link to the earlier, golden age of heroes, making him all the more venerable.

Catalogue Raisonné: Sculpture in Stone (MFA), no. 119; Sculpture in Stone and Bronze (MFA), p. 109 (additional published references); Highlights: Classical Art (MFA), p. 059-060.


Description: Rare pseudo-portrait of Homer of late Hellenistic date, probably based on the earlier baroque style of the second century Pergamene School. This is an Invented image of the author of the Iliad and the Odyssey. Unruly hair, knitted brow, suggest the intensity of the sage; treatment of the eyes reflect the ancient tradition of the blind bard.

The base of the neck is worked for insertion. Most of the nose is missing, as is a fragment from the right side of the neck. Otherwise, the preservation of the surface is almost perfect, and the sculpture has a clean, very light yellow appearance.

Provenance: Possibly acquired in Rome by Edward Perry Warren (b. 1860 - d. 1928), Rome and London [see note 1]; 1904, sold by Warren to the MFA for $74,100 [see note 2]. (Accession Date: January 19, 1904)

NOTES: [1] According to M. B. Comstock and C. C. Vermeule, Sculpture in Stone: the Greek, Roman and Etruscan Collections of the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston (1976), pp. 75-76, no. 119, this is.thought to have been acquired in Rome. [2] This figure is the total price for MFA accession nos. 04.6-04.37.

Text from: collections.mfa.org/objects/151122/homer