Medallion Portrait of Menander

Ancient Greek drama had a long afterlife. The comic playwright Menander worked in the court of a Hellenistic ruler in the fourth to third centuries BCE, but his popularity endured into the late antique period and beyond; there are more ancient Menander portraits in existence than portraits of any other Greek writer or thinker. His own reputed skill at naturalistic portrayals may have made him such a desirable subject; Aristophanes of Byzantium famously wrote, “Oh Menander and Life! Which of you imitated the other?” This particular medallion portrait, produced long after the playwright’s death, would probably have been displayed in a Roman architectural context alongside similar portraits of Greek philosophers and playwrights. Menander, complete with dramatic scroll in the background, would have stood out for his urbane and vigorous features, and his clean-shaven chin would have contrasted with the beards of his more serious companions.