North Carolina Museum of Art

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HIGHLIGHTS

Ancient Collection

Classical

Roman, after Hellenistic original

Aphrodite of Cyrene, 1st Century
Marble, H. 67 1/2 in. (171.5 cm.)
Purchased with funds from the State of North Carolina and from the North Carolina Art Society (Robert F. Phifer Bequest), 1980 (80.9.1)
The Greek goddess Aphrodite, known to the Romans as Venus, was born from the sea according to myth, alluded to in this statue by the dolphin beside her leg. Originally her right arm was bent at the elbow, her hand holding a strand of hair falling to her breast, where a trace of hair is still visible. Her left arm was also probably bent at the elbow to hold a lock tucked behind the left ear. There are many existing examples of this type of Aphrodite, known by the Greek term Anadyomene (rising from the sea).

A marble statue of Aphrodite similar to this one was discovered in 1913 during excavations of the Baths of Trajan in Cyrene, a city in North Africa. The Museum's statue is similar in style to the one from Cyrene-the first of its type discovered-which is now in the Museo Nazionale delle Terme in Rome.