Ancestor masks (imagines maiorum) played an important role in public representation of the Roman aristocracy in republican epoch. While analyzing the extant written evidence and comparing it with archeological material the author has gathered that there were two different forms of imagines: those used during funeral processions and the cereous images (busts) preserved in Roman aristocrats’ houses. Moreover the paper explores the origin of the tradition of ancestor images honouring. The author discovers its beginnings in the 5th century BC when appeared the first mentionings of the tradition of ancestor images honouring. At the same time the Etruscan and Greek influence obviously played an important role in elaborating different types of images. In the second half of the 4th century BC, when the nobility emerged, the patrician tradition of ancestor images spread to plebeian part of the new aristocracy. Also it is most likely that just at that time the technique of posthumous masks making was borrowed from Greece. In the paper special attention is given to socio-political role of ancestor masks during the period of classical Republic (3rd-2nd centuries BC). Studying some evidences of ancient historians the author has come to a conclusion that apart from ritual meaning ancestor images were one of the essential instruments of influencing the masses and election campaigns in the Roman republic. Finally, this traditional form of justification of the proper right to have special position in the society came back in favor also at the time of the principate. The role of ancestor masks demonstration during the funeral ceremonies of principes from the Julio-Claudian dynasty and their kin is traced in the paper on the basis of the extant written evidence of the ancient authors. In the final part of the article the author comes to a conclusion that ancestor masks of the princeps were gradually replaced from emperor’s funeral rite by other forms of images. As a result with the Flavian dynasty came into power this tradition got left, while the image of the dead emperor took the main place in the emperor ’s funeral rite.