Terracotta head of Dionysos

Greek or Roman

On view at The Met Fifth Avenue in Gallery 171

Dionysos, god of wine and the pleasures it can bring, was extremely popular during the Hellenistic and Roman periods. The Greek kings who ruled the lands conquered by Alexander the Great took him as patron deity, and the Romans, impressed by the luxury and wealth of those kingdoms, filled their private villas with images of the god. Dionysos could be shown either as an elderly bearded man, the perfect drinking companion, or as a beautiful youth.

Terracotta head of Dionysos, Terracotta, Greek or Roman

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