Septimius Severus?

[D B Campbell]

I recently came across this photograph, allegedly from the British Museum:
[attachment=0:3ebywcmx]<!-- ia0 BritishMuseum_SeptimiusSeverus.jpg<!-- ia0 [/attachment:3ebywcmx]
The caption reads:

'It is good to see the statue of Septimius Severus, the first African emperor of the Romans, on display. He is seen by many as a very important figure in the historical timeline of black people in Britain. He died and was buried at York. It is the only image of Septimius Severus I've seen to date that shows him with the features and looks of a North African. Seeing this statue in this gallery makes me feel that at last the African presence in ancient Britain is being acknowledged.' Fowokan George Kelly, of Jamaican origin.

Septimius Severus was the first Roman Emperor born in Africa. He ruled between AD 193 and 211. Although his family was of Phoenician rather than black African descent, ancient literary sources refer to the dark colour of his skin and relate that he kept his African accent into old age. He was an accomplished general who, having defeated his internal enemies in a series of civil wars, went on to victories at the furthest frontiers of the Empire, from Mesopotamia to Britain, where he died, at York (Eboracum) in AD 211.

He is shown with his characteristic forked beard and tight curled hair, and is wearing military dress. The statue is not carved fully in the round, but is flat and unfinished at the back, suggesting that it was part of an architectural design. It probably stood in a niche which decorated a public building or monument such as a bath building or a fountain-screen. Much of the statue's detail would have been added in paint.

However, I'm not certain that this statue is of Septimius Severus. hock: What do other people think? (It looks to me very like another emperor -- I won't say which one, in case it influences your thoughts!) Any ideas?

[Jona Lendering]

Severus had a forked beard, like Sarapis; hairs were represented with lots of locks and curls in his days (examples: Marcus, Lucius, Commodus, Julian, Severus himself, Caracalla. I also think it's a later ruler, perhaps Balbinus or Trebonianus Gallus???

[D B Campbell]

(It looks to me very like another emperor -- I won't say which one, in case it influences your thoughts!)

My first thought was Clodius Albinus (who was also an African, so George Fowokan Kelly can still be proud of his African roots). Any takers?

[Gaius Julius Caesar]

So it's definately not Kenny Everet then? :|

[D B Campbell]

So it's definately not Kenny Everet then? :|

That was going to be my second guess. :wink:

[Vindex]

So it's definately not Kenny Everet then? :|

ROFWMKL... :lol:

[Virilis]

So it's definately not Kenny Everet then? :|

Hot Gossip hock: !!!!! hrrrrrr..........

[Epictetus]

His beard was long; his hair was grey and curly, his face was such as to inspire respect.

HA, Septimius Severus, 19.9

His long beard seems to be very consistently portrayed, from a bust in the Capitoline Museum to practically every coin I found in an internet search.

It's hard to see from this angle, but that image from the British Museum doesn't seem to have a very prominent beard at all.

[D B Campbell]

It's hard to see from this angle, but that image from the British Museum doesn't seem to have a very prominent beard at all.

The hair style just looks wrong. Try it from this angle:
[attachment=1:26mbp6pd]<!-- ia1 Portrait.jpg<!-- ia1 [/attachment:26mbp6pd]
Here's a sculpture of Clodius Albinus from Rome:
[attachment=0:26mbp6pd]<!-- ia0 clodio_albino.jpg<!-- ia0 [/attachment:26mbp6pd]
Same man? :?

[Epictetus]

It looks like it to me, right down to the receding hairline. But there might be other reasons for thinking it Septimius Severus, such as the context of it's find. That passage you quoted makes its origin seem rather mysterious.

[D B Campbell]

This is curious. I consulted The Portraits of Septimius Severus (AD 193-211) by Anna Marguerite McCann (Memoirs of the American Academy in Rome, vol. 30, 1968), where she includes the British Museum statue as Catalogue no. 1 on p. 127 (pictured on Pl. XXII).

The short hair clings to the shape of the skull in tiny ringlets which are arranged in a flat half circle over the upper forehead. The beard is short and divided in the middle. The moustache forms an unbroken horizontal line across the upper lip and drops vertically at the corners. A parted tuft of hair is visible below the lower lip. The face is that of a young man. The brows are horizontal with the width of the forehead and cheeks emphasized. The brow is smooth except for two linear furrows between the eyes.

Elsewhere, she includes some sculptures of Clodius Albinus; e.g. Museo Capitolino Inv. 463 on p. 197 (pictured on Pl. CI); this is the example that I pictured earlier for comparison.

The forehead is rounded rather than broad and closely cropped curls fall over the high forehead, receding at the sides. The beard is short and unparted, and the curls tend to cling to the chin and neck rather than curling forward as in the portraits identified here with Severus. The short, full moustache hides the upper lip and a wide tuft of hair appears under the lower lip. Particularly characteristic for the iconography of Albinus is the pattern of the curls of the hair, which lie close to the head and are combed forward in a distinct scale-like pattern. It is this hair pattern which is combed inward around the temples in contrast to Severus' more bushy, scattered curls that is one of Albinus' distinguishing features on the medallions and coins.

Am I mistaken, or could these descriptions be interchangeable? It seems odd that, in the case of the British Museum statue, "the face is that of a young man", yet Severus was almost 50 years old when he came to the throne. (Admittedly, Albinus was only a few years younger.)

[Kai]

Am I mistaken, or could these descriptions be interchangeable?

No, they are. But that is because the first type of Septimius Severus portraits is virtually identical to Clodius Albinus portraits in style. Actually any distinction here is very different, if not impossible, anyway neither save nor definite.

However as you noticed I said first type. German archaeologists usually see three or four types:

The First type: dated between 193 and 196 both Severus and Albinus appear in the same way to emphasize their co-emperorship (if that is a word in English…). There are reasonably distinct from Commodus and Julianus, the most hated emperors of late with the comparatively short and simple hair and beard, although they do not totally break with the Antonine picture, a typical compromise.
The (second) Adoption type: Leaning much stronger towards Antoninian style since he adopted himself into the Antonine family around 195, Septimius Severus is shown with much more elaborated hair and beard, which also gets more voluminous. The coinage confirms this change to have happened around 196, maybe a bit later.
The (third) Serapis type: Easily the most recognizable type, it is the one usually associated with Septimius Severus as Jona’s first reaction shows. The story behind this one says that Severus travelled to Egypt in 200 AD and learned about Serapis, consequently changing his portraits. Indeed this type comes up at this time, but it rather may have something to do with him trying to establish his own dynasty and creating an own image. Most characteristic are the five long curls falling on the forehead, less characteristic but still important is the split beard.
The last (and fourth) type is that of Leptis Magna: the hair gets much shorter, but the beard gets longer.

http://viamus.uni-goettingen.de/fr/e/uni/e/07/01

Here is a standard overview for German classical archaeologists; you will also find further readings. Note is represents German archaeology, often archaeologists in other countries make up different types, although in the case of Septimius Severus the matter is rather clear and should not be too different elsewhere.


So in short, it could Severus of the first type, it could be Albinus. The usual way of distinguishing the two is the stronger receding hairline and conventionally one often says it is Albinus then. But this is convention more than conviction.


Sorry for the long read, I hope it helped a bit at least
Good night,
Kai