Since the late sixteenth century parts of the ‘imperial frieze’ of the Ara Pacis have been known. The most striking figure in the background of the southern frieze is that long thought to be a portrait of Maecenas, the Etruscan prince and literary patron of the Augustan era. This article attempts three things: to discover1.Where and how this identification originated,2.What evidence there now is for that identification, and3.What alternative identifications can be offered.The bibliography is substantial, the trail is complicated and highly paradoxical, and fantasy has often played a large role. The ‘evidence’ in play for centuries has sometimes evaporated into thin air. The identities proposed are, in fact, numerous. Not of least interest is the hidden or mistaken identity, in turn, of crucial modern scholars. A method is proposed at last for evaluating the identifications of this background portrait, including obvious comparison with other background figures. This analysis emphasizes how much is still not known about the most famous piece of Augustan art. An attempt is nevertheless made in the last analysis, to support what can be offered, in the light of current understanding, as the most plausible identification.

中文翻译：

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幕后之人：寻找梅塞纳斯

自 16 世纪后期以来，阿拉帕西斯的“帝国楣板”的一部分就为人所知。南部楣板背景中最引人注目的人物是长期以来被认为是奥古斯都时代的伊特鲁里亚王子和文学赞助人梅塞纳斯的肖像。本文尝试三件事：发现1.这种身份认同的起源地点和方式，2.现在有什么证据可以证明这一身份，以及3.可以提供哪些替代标识。参考书目丰富，线索复杂且自相矛盾，幻想经常发挥重要作用。几个世纪以来一直在发挥作用的“证据”有时会化为乌有。事实上，提出的身份有很多。反过来，重要的现代学者隐藏或错误的身份也不是最不重要的。最后提出了一种评估该背景肖像识别的方法，包括与其他背景人物的明显比较。这一分析强调了奥古斯都最著名的艺术品还有多少未知数。尽管如此，在最后的分析中还是试图支持可以提供的东西，根据当前的理解，作为最合理的识别。