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| Farnese Mercury 1st century AD Roman marble sculpture British Museum |
In the 1860s representatives of the British Museum bought a group of antique marbles that had spent the previous few centuries ornamenting the interior of Palazzo Farnese in Rome. The Mercury above was among these, one of several similar Roman interpretations of a lost Greek original. This Mercury and the Dionysus below both exhibit a smooth finish and perfection of detail that signals heavy restoration. Those who performed and approved the work in the 17th and 18th centuries would no doubt have been astonished to learn how unfavorably their efforts would be regarded by scholars of later centuries.
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| Dionysus 2nd century AD Roman marble sculpture British Museum |
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| Torso of a goddess 1st century AD after a Greek original of the 4th-5th century BC Roman marble sculpture British Museum |
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| Torso of a centaur ca. 1st-2nd century AD Roman marble sculpture in rosso antico Metropolitan Museum of Art |
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| Head of Dionysus 2nd century AD after a Greek original of the 2nd century BC Roman marble sculpture British Museum |
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| Head of an athlete ca. 1st century BC-1st century AD after a Greek original of 470-460 BC Roman marble sculpture British Museum |
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| Bust of the Emperor Hadrian ca. AD 117-138 Roman marble sculpture British Museum |
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| Head of a goddess ca. 30 BC-AD 100 after a Greek original of 350 BC Roman marble sculpture British Museum |
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| Head of an athlete 2nd century BC Roman marble sculpture British Museum |
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| Head of a woman 2nd century AD Roman marble sculpture British Museum |
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| Head of a hoplite 2nd century AD after Greek bronze original Roman marble sculpture British Museum |
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| Head of Athena AD 140-150 after a Greek original of the 4th century BC Roman marble sculpture British Museum |
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| Colossal head of the Emperor Trajan 2nd century AD Roman marble sculpture British Museum |
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| Colossal head of the Emperor Trajan 2nd century AD Roman marble sculpture British Museum |
"There are today only a small number of extant works, primarily portraits, made of gold, silver, or bronze. There were considerably more of these in antiquity. In fact, marble works survive in disproportionate numbers because marble was less valuable than metal, and the gold, silver, and bronze statues were melted down so that their material could be reused. It is thus important to keep in mind that what we have today is not an accurate reflection of what there was in antiquity." – Diana E.E. Kleiner / Roman Sculpture (Yale University Press, 1992)