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This drawing was probably drawn in Rome, during a period in which the artist was interested in studying the graphic potential of the pen and its affinities with the burin technique. It shows physical characteristics reminiscent of the busts portraying Emperor Hadrian or Emperor Antoninus Pius.
The almost three-quarter position and the intensity of the gaze, which can be perceived by observing the hollowed eye sockets, seem to point to an authentic portrait of some ancient personage who, although idealised, is commemorated in an unconventional manner.
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