Gaius, more commonly known by his ancient nickname Caligula (Little Boots), was the first emperor to be assassinated. His uncle and successor, Claudius, had his statues and portraits removed from public view. Many were reworked as portraits of Augustus or of Claudius. It also seems that smaller, personal images of Caligula were deliberately thrown away after his murder; several have been recovered from the River Tiber in Rome.
This image cannot be enlarged, viewed at full screen, or downloaded.
Open Access
As part of the Met's Open Access policy, you can freely copy, modify and distribute this image, even for commercial purposes.
API
Public domain data for this object can also be accessed using the Met's Open Access API.
This artwork is meant to be viewed from right to left. Scroll left to view more.
right
side
left
Artwork Details
Use your arrow keys to navigate the tabs below, and your tab key to choose an item
Title:Bronze portrait head of the emperor Gaius (Caligula)
Period:Early Imperial, Julio-Claudian
Date:ca. 37–41 CE
Culture:Roman
Medium:Bronze
Dimensions:H. 2 11/16 in. (6.8 cm)
Classification:Bronzes
Credit Line:Fletcher Fund, 1925
Object Number:25.78.35
Until 1910, collection of Count Grigoriy Sergeyevich Stroganov, Palazzo Stroganov, Rome; from 1910 and until 1920, with his descendants, Palazzo Stroganov, Rome; [ca. 1920-23, purchased by Giorgio Sangiorgi, Rome]; [until 1925, with G. Sangiorgi, Rome]; acquired in 1925, purchased from G. Sangiorgi.
Pollak, Ludwig and Antonio Muñoz. 1911. Pièces de choix de la collection du comte Grégoire Stroganoff à Rome. p. 28, pl. XXV.2, Rome: Impr. de l'Unione editrice.
Richter, Gisela M. A. 1927. "Recent Accessions in the Classical Department: Vases and Bronzes." Bulletin of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, 22(1): pp. 20–21, fig. 9.
Richter, Gisela M. A. 1941. Roman Portraits, Vol. 1. no. 19, p. 4, New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art.
Richter, Gisela M. A. 1948. Roman Portraits, 2nd edn. no. 40, p. iii, New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art.
Musée & Galerie des Beaux-Arts. 1981. Profil du Metropolitan Museum of Art de New York : de Ramsès à Picasso. no. 54, p. 60, Paris: Musée & Galerie des Beaux-Arts, Bordeaux.
Varner, Eric R. 2000. From Caligula to Constantine: Tyranny and Transformation in Roman Portraiture no. 8, pp. 102–3, 106, Atlanta: Michael C. Carlos Museum, Emory University.
Varner, Eric R. 2000. From Caligula to Constantine : Tyranny & Transformation in Roman Portraiture no. 8, pp. 102–3, Atlanta: Michael C. Carlos Museum, Emory University.
Dahmen, Karsten. 2001. Untersuchungen zu Form und Funktion kleinformatiger Porträts der römischen Kaiserzeit. no. 44, pl. 44, V, Münster: Scriptorium.
Zanker, Paul. 2016. Roman Portraits: Sculptures in Stone and Bronze in the Collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art. no. 23, p. 79, New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art.
Zanker, Paul, Seán Hemingway, Christopher S. Lightfoot, and Joan R. Mertens. 2019. Roman Art : A Guide through the Metropolitan Museum of Art's Collection. no. 152, pp. 304, 306, New York: Scala Publishers.
The Met's Libraries and Research Centers provide unparalleled resources for research and welcome an international community of students and scholars.
The Met Collection API is where all makers, creators, researchers, and dreamers can connect to the most up-to-date data and public domain images for The Met collection. Open Access data and public domain images are available for unrestricted commercial and noncommercial use without permission or fee.
Feedback
We continue to research and examine historical and cultural context for objects in The Met collection. If you have comments or questions about this object record, please complete and submit this form. The Museum looks forward to receiving your comments.
The Museum's collection of Greek and Roman art comprises more than 30,000 works ranging in date from the Neolithic period to the time of the Roman emperor Constantine's conversion to Christianity in A.D. 312.
