Lely Venus – Statue of Aphrodite

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Lely Venus – Statue of Aphrodite of the 19th century, made of Dionysus marble. Dimensions: 80.0 X 45.0 X 55.0 cm.

History:

In the fourth century BC the sculptor Praxiteles created a life-size naked statue of Aphrodite (Venus). It was placed in a shrine in her temple at Knidos in south-western Turkey. It was an important innovation in classical sculpture, and subsequent Hellenistic sculptors created several new types of nude Aphrodite figures, that further emphasized the sexual nature of her cult. This trend perhaps reflected both the rising social status of women and changes in male attitudes towards women: previously only male statues had been naked.

Categories: , SKU: C486

Description

Most of these statues show Aphrodite ineffectually attempting to cover her nakedness with her hands. The action in fact only succeeds in drawing the viewer’s eye towards the sexual areas. In this statue the voluptuous Aphrodite crouches down and turns her head sharply to her right, as if surprised by her audience.

One of the sculptures of this Aphrodite is in the British Museum and it’s known as the Lely Venus after the painter Sir Peter Lely (1618-1680) who owned the statue in the 17th century, probably to distinguish it from other Crouching Aphrodite/Venus sculptures. It was in the collection of the Gonzaga family, Mantua, where it was inventoried in the Gonzaga collection in 1627.

It was to deeply affect Peter Paul Rubens during his time there. It was acquired by King Charles I (an avid collector of Roman antiquities), sold by Duke Vincenzo II of Mantua. Since 1963 it has been on long term loan to the British Museum.

Lely Venus – Statue of Aphrodite of the 19th century, made of Dionysus marble – An exceptional and collectible Greek Statue.

Code: C486

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