The head-and-shoulders portrait sculptures known as portrait busts have been made since antiquity, but the majority of busts available to collectors today date from the 19th and early-20th centuries and are typically made of marble, terracotta, or plaster.
 
“An antique bust, placed on a pedestal, sideboard, or stairway niche with good lighting can be really quite stunning and theatrical,” says Federico Santi, co-owner, with John Gacher, of Drawing Room Antiques, in Newport, Rhode Island. Santi and Gacher always have a number of antique busts and pedestals in their shop; an 1830 marble bust of a handsome young man by Italian sculptor Trentanove, and a circa-1885 marble bust of an unknown female subject, sculpted by and signed by actress Sarah Bernhardt, are two of the portrait busts in their shop currently.

Santi and Gacher advise new collectors to think about how they will display a bust. “A 100-pound marble bust, for example, needs a marble base,” says Santi, who favors old pedestals that have rotating tops. “They are harder to find, but you can rotate the bust for different viewing angles,” he says.

Look for a bust in good condition (no major cracks), with its original socle (attached base), and expect to pay a premium for a famous subject or artist. Prices for antique busts range from $1,000 to $30,000 or more, at antiques stores or garden-antiques shops.

TIP FOR GETTING STARTED: Santi says one of the most modestly priced antique busts a collector will find is a plaster depiction of a president, such as Lincoln or Washington, because these busts were made in quantities.