Roman, Imperial Period, ca. 1st to 3rd century CE. A finely carved marble statue of the Venus (Greek Aphrodite) and Cupid (Greek Eros); this is the Venus Genetrix showing the Roman goddess as Genetrix (mother) as she was so honored by the Julio-Claudian dynasty of Rome - who followed Julius Caesar's precedent and claimed her as their ancestor. The goddess of love and beauty stands in contrapposto with her weight on her right leg, the left leg bent at the knee and is draped with a voluminous himation, the fabric folds hugging her curvaceous form. Note how she gracefully lifts the drapery of her garment with her right hand as she proceeds forward with her lifted left leg. The winged infant Cupid (Eros) sits atop her left shoulder holding an object - perhaps an apple - before his stomach, and Venus appears to be holding a lamp in her raised right hand. Size: 11.75" H (29.8 cm); 12.375" H (31.4 cm) on included custom stand.

Marble statuary and reliefs were ubiquitous in the Roman urban sphere, as the remains of the preserved cities at Herculaneum and Pompeii demonstrate. Small figures like this one may have been used to grace domestic altars or decorate villas or tombs. The religious theme here, of Venus Genetrix, mirrors similar, more monumental marble sculpture, like the famous Venus Genetrix now on view at the Capitoline Museums - though this example is slightly more modest as both breasts are covered by her garment. The pose is somewhat akin to a Greek statue of a woman in the Getty - http://www.getty.edu/art/collection/objects/29621/unknown-maker-statuette-of-a-woman-greek-1st-century-bc/

Provenance: private East Coast, USA collection; ex-Artemis Gallery; ex-William Froelich collection, New York and California (USA) and Saba (Caribbean), acquired in the 1970s; ex-Richard Wagner collection, Cape Cod, Massachusetts, USA, acquired in the 1960s

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#142241

Loss to upper section as shown with missing heads of Venus and Cupid and object in Venus' right hand. Loss to hemline/feet. Expected surface wear/abrasions commensurate with age. Red earthen/mineral deposits grace the surface as well. Old inventory number in black at lower skirt of himation (right side).