Nelson Head

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The Head of a Youth (a.k.a. The Nelson Head) was constructed about mid-2nd century CE and after slight damage to the sculpture, the tip of the nose and the right side of the mouth were restored with marble. Interestingly, the bust (images below) obtained its name from the man who it was procured from, Dr. Philip Nelson, since the subject of the model is unclear (Museum of Fine Arts Boston, 2018). The head, which was sculpted with Dolomitic marble from the Greek island of Thasos, is currently located at the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston, Massachusetts.
Sculpting is the art of shaping materials such as stone, wood, ivory and other materials (Sculpture, 2003) and was quite a popular method of creating art during the Imperial Period when this …show more content…

It strongly resembles the Ares Ludovisi (image below), which is a famous model of a war god found in Rome that was created during the late 4th century BCE by a Greek artist (the Roman copy was made 2nd century BCE), but there are slight differences between the two (Museum of Fine Arts Boston, 2018). For example, the Ares statue displays curly ringlets for hair and a chiseled chin, whereas The Nelson Head has wavy locks and a softer expression with features one would not expect the god of war to portray. However, both sculptures portray similar forms of naturalism and expressionism that depict a bold and powerful subject, meaning it is possible that they are both depictions of …show more content…

In contrast to the smoothness on the face, lines in the ear add to the 3D aspect of the tops of the ear, (where cartilage would be) adding an incredible sense of realism. On the Ares statue, the realism is intensified within the ear as well as the mouth. This due to the addition of more depth into the ear canal, whereas the bust had a somewhat superficial canal. As for the mouth, the artist allowed the subject’s lips to be parted, so the teeth behind the lips could be visible and detailed for the

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