Lot 40
  • 40

A Hellenistic Marble Torso of Aphrodite, circa 2nd Century B.C.

Estimate
100,000 - 150,000 USD
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Description

  • A Hellenistic Marble Torso of Aphrodite
  • Marble
  • Height 13 in. 33 cm.
of the type called Aphrodite Anadyomene, of graceful form standing with her weight on the left leg, her right arm and left forearm formerly raised  to arrange her hair, part of a tress remaining on her right shoulder.

Provenance

Dikran Kelekian, Paris and New York
Mrs. Henry Walters (Parke-Bernet Galleries, New York, Art Collection of Mrs. Henry Walters, Volume Two, April 30th-May 2nd, 1941, no. 1315 (followed two lots later by the Rubens Vase)
the economist Henry A.E. Chandler (1878-1949), Norwalk, Connecticut, acquired at the above sale
by descent to the present owners

Exhibited

Bowdoin College Museum of Art, Brunswick, Maine, 2006-2014

Condition

Good and as shown, note large chip on her left breast, another large chip on the left buttock and lower back of the left leg adjacent to the remnant of a support, other lesser chips and imperfections, surface has been much cleaned in the manner of old collection objects.
In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective qualified opinion.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING CONDITION OF A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE PRINTED IN THE CATALOGUE.

Catalogue Note

Cf.  M. Bieber, The Sculpture of the Hellenistic Age, New York, 1961 (revised edition), figs. 604 and 605, and C.C. Vermeule and M.B. Comstock, Sculpture in Stone and Bronze in the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, Boston, 1988, no. 24 (Aphrodite and the Gods of Love, C. Kondoleon and P.C. Segal, eds., Boston, 2011, no 130). The marble of the present example probably originates from the island of Delos.

Aphrodite was born from the sea, and after she emerged, wrung the sea foam from her hair and tied it in a bun.