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Roman Marble Torso of AphroditeAn ancient Roman marble lower torso of Aphrodite (Venus), the goddess of erotic love and beauty, depicted nude with realistic anatomical proportions. Ca. 1st century AD. This graceful bending pose of Aphrodite was very popular among Roman patrons, and is the product of the Hellenistic age, when Greek sculptors fully explored the subtleties and nuances of the human form in a full range of positions. The pose with its rolls at the waist produces a fleshiness that can not be realized in the more common standing types. For a discussion of the prototype and a list of examples see D. Brinkerhoff, Hellenistic Statues of Aphrodite, New York and London, 1978, pp. 70-97. Cf.: M. Bieber, The Sculpture of the Hellenistic Age, p. 99; fig. 394. Formerly in an American private collection. Inv#: 8668 Price on Request |
