The history of portraiture is inextricably wrapped in everything it means to be human. The portrayal of a person - or people - has, for millennia, acted as political propaganda, shaped religious and social beliefs, and fostered collective opinion and imagination among communities.
How a person is portrayed is as important as the who: think of Alexander the Great and you will be hard-pressed to picture anything but heroic, leonine hair and a serene expression evocative of Golden Age Greece. It was carefully planned artistic rendering, as well as an astute awareness of the history of Hellenistic art, that transformed Alexander from leader of men to demi-god.