The Tiber Muse, Roman Empire, 2nd–1st century BCE. Marble, 119.38 x 33.02 x 60.96 cm. The John R. Van Derlip Fund, 56.12. © Minneapolis Institute of Art

Although discovered in the vicinity of the Tiber river in Rome in 1885, the style of this statue's drapery suggests that it originated in a workshop in Greece or Asia Minor. The Roman importation and copying of Greek sculpture are well documented, from the time of the Roman conquests of Greeks territories in the third century B.C. and throughout the imperial era (27 B.C.-about 395 A.D.). The public exhibition of Greek spoils encouraged Romans to collect Greek art and commission new works in similar styles. Displaying statuary of Greek origin or appearance eventually became a mark of one's social status and education.