This head is sometimes called Octavian, Augustus’s earlier name. Using Greek culture and sculpture as his inspiration, Augustus attempted to re-create the grandeur of classical Athens in Rome. This involved a large amount of idealisation, not least in the many portraits he had made of himself. The example here demonstrates the process well; instead of an individualised likeness of Augustus, we see the smooth, youthful face of a god and the hairstyle of an athlete
Rome, Capitoline Museum, Sala degli Imperatori 413
Transferred from the Archaeological Institute of Göttingen University in August 1991
Verzeichnis der Gipsabgüsse des Archäologischen Instituts der Georg-August-Universität Göttingen, 246, no.A1319
Helbig: Führer durch die Sammlungen Klassischer Altertümer in Rom II (1966), 1278