Our Emporer in the Theater of Miletus

Early February 2011, I visited the Neues Museum in Berlin. It has this beautiful emporer statue on display, found in the theater of Milete (or Miletus) in 1903. The museum description says: "Uber dem Pantzer tragt der Kaiser das Paludamentum, den romischen Feldherrenmantel. Der rechte Arm war erhoben." His cuiras shows two griffins and Helios. It is made of marble and dates from the 2nd century AD. Other pictures of the Neues Museum can be found here!

Visiting the theater of Milete is on my wish list, but until that moment I gratefully use a photo of Jean Thysen (under the following Creative Commons License).

The theater was built in the 4th century BC, after Alexander the Great defeated the Persians who controlled the city. In its first phase in the Hellenistic period, the theater could seat 5,300. After being enlarged in the Roman period, it held 25,000. Byzantine construction over the proscenium destroyed remains of the stage building.

Another, more popular statue found in this theater is the so-called Male Torso of Milete.