A Marble Torso of an Emperor, Roman Imperial, Julio-Claudian, 1st half of the 1st Century A.D.

probably representing Augustus, Tiberius, or Claudius, carved in two parts, standing with the weight on his right leg and wearing a tunic, leather corselet with fringed lappets falling at the waist and shoulders, bronze cuirass, and paludamentum falling from the left shoulder over the back and formerly over the extended left forearm, the bronze breastplate decorated in relief on the chest with the god Sol emerging from the waters in a frontal quadriga and on the abdomen with two Victories flanking a trophy and hanging shields onto it, a large inverted palmette below with scrolling acanthus and rosettes on either side, the upper row of pteryges decorated with alternating feline heads above lotus flowers and addorsed rams' heads above palmettes, the lower row with alternating gorgoneia and palmettes, a bearded head interrupting the sequence on the right hip, the neck carved out for insertion of a portrait head.

from one of the Twin Temples on the northeast corner of the forum of Salona in Dalmatia
Aloys Maximilian Neumann (1829-1906), Graz, acquired in the mid 19th Century in Split, Kingdom of Dalmatia
by descent to the present owners

Walter Schmid, "Torso einer Kaiserstatue im Panzer," in M. Abramić & V. Hoffiller, eds., Strena Buliciana: Commentationes gratulatoriae Francisco Bulic ob XV vitae lustra feliciter peracta oblatae a discipulis et amicis, Zagreb, 1924, pp. 45 ff., pl. 5
Johannes Sieveking, Eine römische Panzerstatue in der Münchner Glyptothek (Winckelmannsprogramm der archäologischen Gesellschaft zu Berlin, 91), Berlin and Leipzig, 1931, pp. 10 and 20
Jan Willem Salomonson, Chair, Sceptre and Wreath: Historical Aspects of their Representations on Roman Sepulchral Monuments, Amsterdam, 1956, p. 45, note 77
Festschrift fur Rudolf Egger: Beiträge zur älteren europäische Kulturgeschichte, Klagenfurt, 1954, p. 36
Konrad Schauenburg, Helios, Berlin, 1955, p. 38, note 338
Cornelius C. Vermeule, "Hellenistic and Roman Cuirassed Statues," Berytus, vol. 13, 1959-1960, p. 39, no. 45
B. Gabričević, "Antički spomenici otoka Visa," Prilozi povijesti umjetnosti u Dalmaciji, vol. 17, 1968, pp. 57-58
Jahrbuch des Römisch-Germanischen Zentralmuseums Mainz, vol. 17, 1970, p. 144
K. Stemmer, Untersuchungen zur Typologie, Chronologie und Ikonographie der Panzerstatuen, 1978, pp. 56-57, cat. V 1, pl. 34,1, and pages 70-71, 126, 156, and 158
Cornelius C. Vermeule, Hellenistic and Roman Cuirassed Statues, Boston, 1980, p. 32, no. 21, illus. p. 60
Ula Kreilinger, Römische Bronzeappliken: Historisches reliefs im Kleinformat, Heidelberg, 1996, p. 39
S. Ivčević, "Carske statue s Visa," Histria Antiqua, vol. 4, 1998, p. 77
N. Cambi, Kiparstvo rimske Dalmacije, Split, 2005, p. 49, fig. 62
J. Jeličić-Radonić, "Tragovi carskoga kulta u Saloni," Signa et Litterae (Znakovi I riječi) II, Split, 2008, pp. 84-85, fig. 2
Arachne. Datenbank und kulturelle Archive des Forschungsarchiv für Antike Plastik Köln und des Deutsches Archäologisches Instituts, no. 32209

Proper left upper arm repaired from several fragments, some fresh chips along edges where both pieces meet, otherwise as described and shown.
In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective qualified opinion.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING CONDITION OF A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE PRINTED IN THE CATALOGUE.

For another example closely related in style and workmanship, probably from the same workshop, see Stemmer, op. cit, cat. VII 5, pl. 51,3-4, in the Zagreb Archaeological Museum.

For another representation of the god Sol and his chariot on the breast of a cuirassed torso see the Augustus Primaporta in the Vatican Museums (D.E.E. Kleiner, Roman Sculpture, New Haven and London, 1992, fig. 42).