Bust of a Woman

Description The pin itself has broken off and all that remains is the elaborate pinhead: a scallop shell, an orb, and the bust of a woman. The hairstyle of the woman is that favored by Julia Domna, wife of the emperor Septimius Severus, and this is possibly a representation of the empress herself. Elaborate bone pins were common, their heads frequently in the form of miniature Aphrodites or female heads, as here.

Provenance William T. / Henry Walters Collection, Baltimore [date and mode of acquisition unknown]; Walters Art Museum, 1931, by bequest.

Credit Acquired by William T. or Henry Walters