Academic Drawing In The Antique Style - Bust Of Brutus, 1901

Superb framed charcoal drawing of the bust of Brutus Capitolinus, representing the consul Lucius Junius Brutus.
Drawing after the antique signed and dated 1901 top left.
Very fine late 18th-early 19th-century stuccoed and gilded wood frame.
Total dimensions: 68.5x58.5 cm.
Dimensions of the drawing: 49x40 cm.
(Small accidents to the frame, some restorations at the edge of the drawing, creases).

This charming academic drawing depicts the famous bronze bust of the consul Lucius Junius Brutus known as Brutus Capitolinus.
This antique is traditionally identified as the portrait of Lucius Junius Brutus, the mythical founder of the Roman Republic in 509 BC, famous for driving out the last king of Rome.
Originally, the head was part of a life-size bronze statue. In Rome, these statues of great men were erected on the Capitol to serve as examples of civic virtue to the citizens.

A trace of the statue was lost throughout the Middle Ages (when the majority of antique bronzes were melted down to make weapons or bells).

In 1564, the head alone reappeared. It was bequeathed to the city of Rome by Cardinal Rodolfo Pio da Carpi, a great collector. It was at this time that the bronze bust draped in a toga was added so that it could be displayed elegantly in the Capitoline Museums, from which it takes its current name.

Today, archaeologists continue to debate whether this bust really represents the historical Brutus, as there is no contemporary written evidence. However, whether it is him or another Roman magistrate, the work remains the universal symbol of the ideal Roman Republic.