Young Octavian

Copied Edmonia Lewis, Young Octavian, ca. 1873, marble, 16 3⁄4 x 8 1⁄4 x 6 1⁄4 in. (42.5 x 21.0 x 15.9 cm.), Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Mr. and Mrs. Norman Robbins, 1983.95.180
Free to use

Artwork Details

Title
Young Octavian
Artist
Date
ca. 1873
Location
Dimensions
16 3⁄4 x 8 1⁄4 x 6 1⁄4 in. (42.5 x 21.0 x 15.9 cm.)
Credit Line
Gift of Mr. and Mrs. Norman Robbins
Mediums
Mediums Description
marble
Classifications
Subjects
  • Portrait male — Octavian — bust
  • Occupation — other — aristocrat
  • Italian
Object Number
1983.95.180
Linked Open Data
https://edan.si.edu/saam/id/object/1983.95.180

Artwork Description

Young Octavian, or Augustus, shows the adopted heir of Julius Caesar. It is a copy of a sculpture in the Vatican galleries that dates from the late eighteenth or early nineteenth century. Many artists copied this piece, and it became so popular that tourists could even order reproductions from a catalogue. Edmonia Lewis’s version was considered to be one of the best available, as described by a descendant of one of her patrons: “[It] seemed to all of us the best reproduction of the original then offered by any artist in Rome.”