Uploaded April 2025 | Updated September 2026, 10 hours ago
There are few artefacts that allow you to look directly into the eyes of one of the most famous leaders of the ancient world. The Meroe Head is one of them. This fragment of a once larger-than-lifesize statue may not be the reason you first go to the British Museum, but once you enter that corridor, it immediately grabs you with its unbreakable stare.
What’s so captivating about the Meroe head is its inlaid eyes. They’re dramatic and when you hold its gaze it almost feels like they’re peering into your soul. The preservation of these inlays of glass and calcite means that this statue doesn’t have the vacancy or indifference that so many other ancient sculptures possess. You are immediately confronted with this object, and are forced to acknowledge the person staring back at you. And in this case, that person is Augustus, the first emperor of Rome.
There are few artefacts that allow you to look directly into the eyes of one of the most famous leaders of the ancient world. The Meroe Head is one of them. This fragment of a once larger-than-lifesize statue may not be the reason you first go to the British Museum, but once you enter that corridor, it immediately grabs you with its unbreakable stare.
What’s so captivating about the Meroe head is its inlaid eyes. They’re dramatic and when you hold its gaze it almost feels like they’re peering into your soul. The preservation of these inlays of glass and calcite means that this statue doesn’t have the vacancy or indifference that so many other ancient sculptures possess. You are immediately confronted with this object, and are forced to acknowledge the person staring back at you. And in this case, that person is Augustus, the first emperor of Rome.
