The bronze equestrian statue of Marcus Aurelius

 

This bronze equestrian statue of Marcus Aurelius was originally on the Capitoline Hill, before being moved into the Capitoline Museum in 1990. In 1997, a replica was placed on the square.

The original statue is 4 meters high, almost 4 meters wide and weighs over 2500 kg. It depicts the emperor with an outstretched army talking to his citizens (allocutio). The statue was originally gilded, some trace of this can be seen on the statue.

It was either created in 176 AD to celebrate the emperor's victory over the German tribes or in 180 AD, shortly after his death. The reason why the statue is so well preserved, is because for a long time it was thought to be a depiction of the emperor Constantine.

Therefore, the bronze was not melted over and could be preserved. This deduction was made based on facial similarities between the statue and figures depicted on the triumphal arch of Constantine. This was later proved wrong as fragments of older arches were used in the building of Constantine's arch, including that of Marcus Aurelius.

Mythistoria