Aphrodite Torso
Unknown Artist
200–1 BCE
Medium
Thasian marble
Dimensions
66.3 × 36.2 cm
Classification
Sculpture
Department
Greek and Roman Art
Museum
Cleveland Museum of Art
Credit
John L. Severance Fund
Accession Number
1988.9
About this artwork
No single sculpture in the history of Western art has been more influential than Praxiteles’s Knidian Aphrodite, carved in the 4th century BC. The first sculpted nude figure of the goddess of love, it became a famous tourist attraction and made Praxiteles a celebrity in the Greek world. The shocking originality of showing the goddess unaware that she had been seen emerging from her bath made a lasting impression. It became a prototype for generations of Greek and Roman sculptors. Its popularity ...