Portrait of Severus Alexander

Portrait head of the Roman emperor Severus Alexander (AD 222-235) as a very young man . The left side of head was restored by Bartolomeo Cavaceppi. The hair is arranged in characteristic long flat flame-like bi-partite tufts, with a clearly delineated hairline at the front. The head seems to bulge at the rear, the eyes look directly to the right, and the lips are full with the lower slightly swollen in appearance. H.P.L’Orange was the first to suggest that these features represented Severus Alexander’s portrait type. There would appear to be ancient graffiti on the right cheek. The left part of the head with the neck is a restoration (with a crack in it), as is the back of the head and the bust, the nose, ear and chin.