# Head of a Bearded Old Man [View the canonical artwork record]() ## Artwork - Artist: [PAJOU, Augustin]() - Date: 1751-1800 - Technique: Terracotta, height 64 cm ## Commentary Pajou created several character studies of old men, unconnected with other projects and not portraits. The present bust of a man in contemplation was probably made as an exercise in rendering human expressions. Such studies were modelled from life and depict a specific emotion, such as 'despondency' or 'suffering'. They were seen as a test of skill and were a requirement for election to the Academy of Painting and Sculpture in Paris. ## Related artworks - [Bas-relief]() - [Bas-relief]() - [Bust of Louis XVI]() - [Bust of Madame du Barry]() - [Head of a Bearded Elder]() - [Hubert Robert]() - [Madame de Wailly \(detail\)]() - [Madame de Wailly]() - [Mantel clock]() - [Psyche Abandoned]() - [The Princess of Hesse-Homburg as Minerva]() ## Attribution [Web Gallery of Art]()