Wall painting fragment showing human face Artist: Unknown

A.D. 165–256

Ancient Art

On view, 1st floor, Dura-Europos

While sculpted portraits were ubiquitous in Roman cities, they were not the only faces to be found. Painted portraits were also common, though they rarely appear in the archaeological record. The extraordinary preservation of ancient Dura-Europos led to the survival of images such as this one: portraits painted on the plaster walls of a public bath. Baths were a distinctively Roman type of architecture, integrated into the urban design of provincial cities as they adopted Roman culture.

Medium

Paint on plaster

Dimensions

6 1/8 × 7 11/16 in. (15.5 × 19.5 cm)

Credit Line

Yale-French Excavations at Dura-Europos

Accession Number

1929.354

Geography

Excavated in Dura-Europos, Syria

Culture

Syrian, Dura-Europos

Period

Roman (2nd or 3rd century A.D.)

Classification

Paintings

Disclaimer

Note: This electronic record was created from historic documentation that does not necessarily reflect the Yale University Art Gallery’s complete or current knowledge about the object. Review and updating of records is ongoing.

Provenance
Excavated by the Yale-French Excavations at Dura-Europos (block E3, Roman bath, room b), present-day Syria, 1928–37; Yale University Art Gallery, New Haven, Conn.
Bibliography
  • Lisa R. Brody and Gail Hoffman, eds., Roman in the Provinces: Art on the Periphery of Empire (Chestnut Hill, Mass.: McMullen Museum of Art, 2014), 276, no. 78, pl. 78
Object copyright
No Copyright - United States
Additional information

Object/Work type

figures (representations)

Technical metadata and APIs

IIIF

Open in Mirador

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