A bust of the great, Roman Emperor Hadrian has been excavated at the archaeological site of Los Torrejones in the Region of Murcia in Spain where archaeological digs were conducted last year. Though discovered between October and December of 2014, the bust was only unveiled to the public recently.

The 52 cm high sculpture, carved out of white marble, is believed to date to 135 AD. It appears to belong to the “Rollockenfrisur” type, one of the six sculptural types attributed to the extant corpus of Hadrian portraits by M. Wegner, a German specialist on Roman portraiture (a seventh type was added later on). Approximately 160 portraits of Hadrian have survived, and the “Rollockenfrisur” type was a one popular mostly in the provinces. This particukar styke is characterized by nine curls which frame the face evenly and roll onto themselves in an anti clockwise movement.

The new bust was found alongside another smaller figure depicting a woman dating to the same period. Both were laying at the entrance of a large building whose exact purpose has not yet been established, but is known to have had something to do with water. It is possible that the structure was linked to the worship of the Emperor. The Los Torrejones site consists of a rural Roman villa complex which included a monumental residential area in which the owner lived (Pars Dominica) as well an area reserved for servants and workers of the farm (Pars Rustica). It is one of five such sites discovered in the municipality of Yecla which are known to have been occupied between the 1st and 4th centuries AD.

Excavation work at the site of Los Torrejones is an ongoing project and further digs will probably be scheduled for 2015.

The bust will be on display at the Archaeological Museum of Yecla from this coming weekend.