The seven female effigies form a group, illustrating the evolution both of style and fashion of hair in the late first or early second centuries. The two imperial ladles provide the chronological frame for the whole group: Julia, daughter of the emperor Titus, and Plotina, wife of the emperor Trajan. All seven ladies reveal strong, even domineering personalities—reflections of their time as well as of themselves.
Julia Titi (d. ca. 92) is reflected in the historical sources as an outspoken and rather libertine personality. Daughter of Titus and mistress of her uncle Domitian, she received the honor of having her official image struck on coins, which are the starting point for the identification of her sculptural portraits. With all due reservations concerning the “reality” of imperial portrait types as created by official court sculptors, Julia appears to be an independent character. Little remains of the matronal virtues which marked even younger women from the late Republic through the early Empire. There may be some slight doubt about the identification of our head, as it does not fit perfectly in the established group of Julia’s portraits; and the quality is considerably superior to the numbed artisanal repetitions frequent in the standard copies of imperial images. Both questions may be answered by supposing that this sculpture is a posthumous image in which the souvenir of Julia’s lively nature elevated the artistic imspiration in even an official image. We see her just as herself: free from any bonds, her appearance reflecting her joy in life with a candid insolence. Imperial status is alluded to by the heavy diadem which was inserted with colored stones and glass imitating jewels. The plump cheeks cover the bone structure well, and the full lips are pursed, revealing a sensuality dominated by a rather capricious intellect. However independent of mind, she pays full tribute to the fashions of the day. Hours must have been spent with the hairdresser in order to erect the elaborate curly pyramid of coiffure, even though it includes a clearly evident artificial hairpiece. The whole must have been the sculptor’s joy. He used the running drill abundantly to render the deeply cut locks which contrast with the subtly modeled forehead and cheeks. The traditional polychromy, now practically vanished, must have enhanced the general pictorial approach. On closer inspection we can still trace the incisions for painted irises and pupils, which must have given a rather penetrating look. The lips must have reflected the copious use of cosmetics and the reddish hair, the use of henna or other dyes.
World History
