is said to bear his characteristic bulging eyes and beard. Prof Waelkens said the pupils were gazing upwards "as if in deep contemplation, perfectly fitting of an emperor who was more of a philosopher than a soldier". He added that the sculpture, which stood about 4.5m (nearly 15ft) tall, was one of the finest depictions of the Roman ruler. The emperor wore exquisitely carved army boots decorated with a lion skin, tendrils and Amazon shields. The torso was probably covered in bronze armour filled inside with terracotta or wood. When the niche's vault collapsed in the earthquake, the torso would have exploded. Bath complex The statue of Hadrian was found lying halfway down in the frigidarium's rubble. This initially led archaeologists to think it had been hauled inthere from another part of the huge bath complex, perhaps to remove its gilded bronze armour, or to burn the huge marble pieces to make cement in a nearby lime kiln. However, they now think sculptures of Hadrian, his wife Vibia Sabina, another Roman emperor Antoninus Pius, his wife Faustina the Elder, and Marcus Aurelius all once adorned niches situated around the room. There were three large niches on both the western and eastern sides. The fragments of Hadrian's statue were found near the south-west niche. The front parts of two female feet were discovered in the opposite niche, on the room's south-eastern side. The remains of a globe can still be seen, cupped in the right hand

The archaeologists now think these belonged to a colossal figure of