Portrait of a Roman Noblewoman

This portrait of a Roman nobleswoman, perhaps Livila, belonging to the Julio-Claudian family, belongs to the Fagan's collection from the Archaeological Museum in Palermo.The purchase of the "Fagan's marbles" (1819) was a turning point in the birth of the Archaeological Museum of Palermo (Museo dell'Università) not so much because of its intrinsic value, but because the debate fostered in Sicily by the "Fagan affair" articulated the need for a more effective system for preservation of cultural heritage. A systematic review of the archival documents and 19th century literature, and of the statues and inscriptions said to be from the Fagan collection, from Fagan's own excavations at Tyndaris (1809), and generically from Tyndaris, allows to identify the ancient marbles found in Tyndaris both by Fagan and in other circumstances (later scattered and confused), and their findspot. It is a large ensemble of Roman statues (many of which in a fragmentary state) and honorary inscriptions, some of which already known in 18th century and moved between 1815-1820 to the new Museo dell'Università, that in the same time received also the "Fagan's marbles". These latter are all of the same origin (except for five reliefs from Greece, among which is a fragment of the Parthenon frieze), like a few pieces collected by the Barone Sciacca della Scala at Tyndaris, and others which were found there near the "Basilica" in mid 20th century excavations (stored in the local Antiquarium). The ancient reports, and especially the short report written by R. Fagan himself, confirm that the sculptures and the inscriptions were, indeed, discovered in the porticoed complex adjoining the "Basilica" (probably functioning as a monumental entrance hall) where an imperial statue group was displayed, the largest known so far from Sicily.这幅描绘罗马贵妇的肖像作品，其身份或为尤利乌斯-克劳狄乌斯家族（Julio-Claudian family）的莉维拉（Livila），现隶属于巴勒莫考古博物馆的法根藏品系列。1819年购入的“法根大理石藏品”，是巴勒莫考古博物馆（时称大学博物馆（Museo dell'Università））创立进程中的关键转折点。这一转折的核心并非源于藏品本身的内在价值，而是因“法根事件”在西西里岛引发的热议，明确了构建更高效的文化遗产保护体系的迫切需求。通过对档案文献、19世纪相关记载，以及据称出自法根藏品的雕像与铭文——包括1809年法根在廷达瑞斯（Tyndaris）的考古发掘出土品，以及泛指廷达瑞斯地区出土文物——进行系统性梳理，可甄别出法根及其他场合（后流散混杂）在廷达瑞斯发现的古代大理石文物及其具体出土地点。该藏品体系包含大量罗马雕像（多数已呈残碎状态）与荣誉性铭文，其中部分文物早在18世纪便已为人所知，并于1815至1820年间被移送至新建的大学博物馆，该馆同期亦入藏了“法根大理石藏品”。这批后续入藏的文物（即“法根大理石藏品”）除5件来自希腊的浮雕（其中包含一段帕特农神庙（Parthenon）檐壁残片）外，其余均为同源藏品；类似的还有斯卡卡·德拉·斯卡拉男爵（Barone Sciacca della Scala）在廷达瑞斯收集的数件文物，以及20世纪中期在廷达瑞斯“巴西利卡”遗址附近发掘出土的其余文物（现藏于当地古物馆（Antiquarium））。古代相关记载，尤其是R·法根本人撰写的简短报告证实，这批雕塑与铭文确实出土于毗邻“巴西利卡”的柱廊建筑群（推测曾作为纪念性入口大厅使用），该区域曾陈列有一组帝国雕像群，是目前已知西西里岛出土的规模最大的同类遗存。