Ideal Portrait of Alexander the Great as Helios

One of the titles given to Alexander the Great was Helios, the sun king. This idealised portrait has Alexander’s characteristic wild thick hair, but it partially tied back with a band around his head. There are holes in the band where a metal radiate crown would have been attached, hence this piece’s name. The original is thought to date from at least a century after Alexander’s death in 323 B.C. Roman copy of a larger-than-life Hellenistic head.