One of a pair of medallions with portrait busts

An item at Metropolitan Museum of Art

This elegant pair (with 2003.16.2) of roundel medallions with male busts, probably worn as cloak clasps, display a naturalism rarely encountered in portrait imagery found on Satavahana or Kushana coins and medallions. This object type has a lineage reaching back to Hellenistic Alexandria and more immediate parallels in Parthian (Iranian) royal portraiture of the first century CE. They were likely inspired by West Asian examples that circulated in the Indian luxury market.

Asian Art

An exhibit at Metropolitan Museum of Art

The Met's collection of Asian art—more than 35,000 objects, ranging in date from the third millennium B.C. to the twenty-first century—is one of the largest and most comprehensive in the world. Each of the many civilizations of Asia is represented by outstanding works, providing an unrivaled experience of the artistic traditions of nearly half the world.

Metropolitan Museum of Art