Grand Tour Bust of Young Octavian on an Egyptian Porphyry Socle

finely carved in white statury marble depicted a young Octavian, later Augustus Caesar, heir to Julius Caesar. Named Octavian before becoming emperor in 27 BC, He was 19 at the time of the murder of Julius Caesar and was part of the Second Triumvirate which defeated the assassins of Caesar. The original marble is in the Vatican collection (Pius Clementinus Museum – Gallery of the Busts) and dates from the first century BC. This sculpture was made for an English patron in the Early 19th Century. The rare Egyptian porphyry socle on which the bust stands was probably made from recycled ancient Egyptian sculpture.