Ca. 193 - 211 AD. Roman. This beautifully draped bust shows Julia Domna, the wife of Emperor Septimius Severus, with sensitively rendered facial features. Her carefully combed, centrally parted hair is pulled back over her ears and tied at the back of the head in a broad flat knot. She wears a 'stola', a long, pleated dress worn by patrician women, which is fastened by clasps at the shoulder by fibulae. Stolae were associated with traditional Roman female virtues, especially modesty (Harlow 2012, 39). Julia Domna was the second wife of Emperor Septimius Severus, whom she married in 185 AD. She outlived her husband by six years, witnessed the murder of her son Geta, and finally died or committed suicide in 217 AD upon hearing of the death of her other son, the Emperor Caracalla. Her distinctive features are recognisable across a vast array of surviving portraits in marble, on coins, and on engraved gems. Good condition. Cf. Harlow, M. E. (2012) 'Dressing to please themselves: clothing choices for Roman Women' in Harlow, M.E. (ed.) Dress and identity. University of Birmingham IAA Interdisciplinary Series: Studies in Archaeology, History, Literature and Art 2. Oxford: British Archaeological Reports. Size: L:135mm / W:85mm ; 140g. Provenance: Property of a London Gallery, previously with Mr. M.P. Dannish collector; acquired in the 1990s.