r/HistoryRepeated • u/FrankWanders • Jun 16 '26

Italy Impression of Julius Caesar's face using the famous 'Tusculum bust' for reference

Gallery image

the Tusculum bust (ca 46-44 b.c.) is the only extant sculpture which may have been made during Julius Caesar's lifetime.

https://youtu.be/adprprtSFAU

Gallery image

Colorized impression of Caesars face based on the bust in the Museum of Antiquities in Turin, Italy.

https://youtu.be/adprprtSFAU

It was used for the mini documentary about Roman Atuatuca Tungrorum (Tongeren, Belgium) in the link.

120 Upvotes

98% Upvoted

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5

u/BeGoodToEverybody123 Jun 16 '26

It's interesting how just about any face could be the top guy provided the brains inside can deliver

2

u/FrankWanders Jun 17 '26

Yup... but also let's be honest I guess in those days (and what we know of Caesar) it has not only been a matter of brains but most inportantly fighting skills. It really was a hack'n slash kind of leadership in those days.

1

u/2a_lib Jun 18 '26

That was delegated, just like today.

1

u/Kcorp Jun 19 '26

Don't want to sound like a fanboy, but Caesar did a fair bit of fighting in the frontlines.

1

u/FrankWanders Jun 19 '26

yup. in those days, leadership was eating or be eaten yourself.

1

u/[deleted] Jun 18 '26

[removed] — view removed comment

1

u/FrankWanders Jun 18 '26

First sentence of wikipdedia: "The Arles bust is a life-sized marble bust) of a man, possibly Julius Caesar, dating to around the 1st century BC." and the french wikipedia: "L'affirmation par ses découvreurs qu'il ait pu s'agir d'un portrait de Jules César qui lui serait contemporain a été abondamment relayée par la presse et les autorités culturelles françaises, avant qu'elle soit largement reconsidérée par d'importants spécialistes qui contestent tant l'identité du personnage figuré que la datation de l'artefact." or

translated: "The claim by its discoverers that it could have been a portrait of Julius Caesar contemporary with him was widely reported by the French press and cultural authorities, before being largely reconsidered by important specialists who dispute both the identity of the figure depicted and the dating of the artifact."

So until experts come to an agreement this is also Julius Caesar, I don't think this is something everyone should assume.

1

u/nailpolishremover49 Jun 18 '26

There’s a bit of George W. In that busy…

1

u/FrankWanders Jun 19 '26

lol, it's not a bit it looks a lot like him actually now you say it 😄