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Secondary sourcePainting

Portrait of Cicero (Bildnis des Cicero)

An undated engraved cameo-style portrait of Cicero in profile, shown with ancient Roman coins.

A later scholarly portrait pairing Cicero's image with ancient coins, showing how his likeness was reconstructed over time.

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Engraved print on cream paper showing an oval cameo portrait in profile of Cicero, a bald-fronted man with curly hair facing left. Below are a label reading CICERO and two Roman coins, with a Latin inscription at the bottom and the number 78.
Portrait of Cicero (Bildnis des Cicero). Leipzig University Library, Germany.

About this source

What it is

This engraved print shows an oval cameo-style profile portrait of Cicero, bald-fronted with curly hair, labelled 'CICERO' and displayed alongside two Roman coins. The artist is unknown, and it is held by Leipzig University Library in Germany.

Why it matters

Pairing a portrait with ancient coins was a common way for scholars to connect an image to historical evidence, since Roman coins sometimes carried images or names linked to notable figures. This print reflects how later generations tried to piece together what Cicero may have looked like using available ancient sources.

Look closer

  • Why might the maker have included coins alongside the portrait?
  • What does the Latin inscription and numbering suggest about how this print was meant to be used, perhaps in a book or reference collection?
  • How reliable do you think a portrait like this is as evidence of Cicero's real appearance?

This painting is part of the curated material that grounds the AI version of Cicero on Humy.ai — when students ask about related events, the AI can quote it and cite it.

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Manuscript page numbered 169 in Latin, handwritten in brown ink with a decorated illuminated initial letter in the upper left in red, green, and blue with gold accents. The text begins with the opening words of Cicero's first Catilinarian oration, 'Quo usque tandem abutere...'.Speech

Primary source

Catiline Orations

Cicero · 63 BCE

Engraved print of a bust of Marcus Tullius Cicero, shown in three-quarter view facing right. The bust has curly hair, a draped toga over the shoulder, and sits on a round stepped pedestal. Latin caption below reads M. TVLLIVS CICERO, Ex marmore antiquo, with small engraver credits in the bottom corners.Painting

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Marcus Tullius Cicero, engraved after antique marble busts

Jan Witdoeck

Open manuscript leaf with illuminated Latin text. A decorated initial at left contains a small painted portrait of a bearded man wearing a crown. Ornamental borders in gold, blue, pink, and green frame the page, with cherubs at the bottom. The Latin text is written in brown ink in a formal script.Book

Primary source

De Officiis

Cicero · 44 BC

Manuscript page of Latin text in dark brown ink on yellowed parchment, with a faded underlying script visible in the lower layer. Stained and darkened areas across the page, a palimpsest with the upper text dominant.Book

Primary source

De re publica

Cicero · c. 54–51 BC

Engraving in stipple style, numbered LXXII at top right. An elderly man in a toga reaches out toward a centurion in plumed helmet and armor who points at him, while soldiers and onlookers gather near a curtained litter and a doorway. A seated figure in the foreground leans forward. Signed in the lower corners.Painting

Secondary source

Death of Cicero

1801

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