Statue of Aphrodite
Γ43
White marble
Headless, missing all the limbs, crack in area of right shoulder and abrasions on skin in many places
Preserved height: 54 cm. Max. width: 24 cm.
Gortyn
Roman period:
early 2nd c. AD:
Gallery:
XXVIICase:
Not in caseExhibition thematic unit:
Sculpture. Hellenistic period (3rd-2nd c. BC) Roman period (1st c. BC-3rd c. AD)Statues of gods
Description
Smaller-than-life-size statue of Aphrodite. It captures the moment when the nude goddess, here wearing only a bracelet on her left wrist, is surprised at her bath by something or someone behind her and crouches down, attempting to cover her nakedness with her hands, and turning her head to the right, in the direction of the danger. This statue type, known as the “Crouching Venus” or “Venus at Her Bath”, originated in a bronze sculpture by the Bithynian artist Doidalses circa 250 BC and became very popular. It was frequently copied and reworked throughout Antiquity and into later times. The Gortyn copy is considered one of the most faithful to the original, produced by a local workshop which made an earnest effort to render the lively figure moving in space. Despite the simplified anatomical details and the need to make the arms and head of separate pieces of marble secured by iron dowels, the artist has produced an interesting sculpture, its quality evident despite its indifferent state of preservation.Bibliography:
Lullies R., Die kauernde Aphrodite, Rome, 1954, 16, no. 23. N. Platon, A Guide to the Archaeological Museum of Heraclion, Athens 1964, 153. I. Romeo-E.C. Portale, Gortina III. Le sculture, Padova 1998, 220-222, no. 77. K.Sporn, "The Cretan Venus", Überlegungen zur Skulpturenausstattung von römischen Privathäusern auf Kreta, in P. Karanastasi, Th. Stefanidou-Tiveriou, D. Damaskos (eds), Γλυπτική και κοινωνία στη ρωμαϊκή Ελλάδα: καλλιτεχνικά προϊόντα, κοινωνικές προβολές. Διεθνές συνέδριο, Ρέθυμνο, 26-28 Σεπτεμβρίου 2014, Thessaloniki 2018, 280, n. 47. R. Sturm, Kauernde Aphrodite: Die Bedeutung des Bildmotivs in der antiken und postantiken Kunst, Hamburg 2015.Author:
K. S.Photographs' metadata