Goddess of Love Aphrodite Kallipyge (2nd century B.C.) National Museum, Naples

Aphrodite Kallipyge 16-1/2" H Sorry! This item is no longer available.

This statue of the goddess of love is a reproduction of a late Hellenistic work copied by a Roman. It once stood in the center of a pool of the Domus Aurea, the Golden House in Rome. That place built for the Emperor Nero was incredibly vast. With its outbuildings and gardens it spread over most of the three hills above the site where the Coliseum was later built, covering one hundred twenty-five acres. The gardens were adorned with hundreds of magnificent statues. In ancient times, as well as modern, the statue has been called Aphrodite Kallipyge. "Kalli pyge" in Greek means "beautiful posterior." The uninhibited appellation has certainly come down to us without intentional humor although we in this age find it amusing. To the Greeks and Romans it seemed an appropriate description of the vanity of Aphrodite, the love goddess, who removes her chiton and looks back over her shoulder to admire the reflection of her lovely body in the pool. These items are imported from Italy and are the same items that were previously available from Eleganza in Seattle.