Venus of Willendorf
Venus of Willendorf, often referred to as Nude Woman, is a female sculpture that was discovered in 1908 by Josef Szombathy not far from the Austrian town of Willendorf. According to estimates, it was created between 24,000 and 22,000 BCE (Koppelman and Franks 124).
Although little is known about the carving's origin, its method, or its artistic significance, it is one of the many symbols of female figures (often portable) that have survived from the Paleolithic era. The 4-inch sculpture is stained crimson, has a gritty texture, and resembles the human body in terms of scale and proportion. According to Littleton, the sculpture was made out of limestone material and was formed by carving away the stone, which is a subtractive technique of producing sculptures (503). The sculpture is proportionally carved and is basic in form with no facial details and feet, but with strong hips and enlarged breasts. Due to sexuality being emphasized, the sculpture is thought to depict fertility.
Bust of Augustus
In this marble bust, Augustus is donning a wreath termed as the corona civica, "an oak leaf crown" (Gellius 120). Gellius relates that it was made of oak leaves because the earliest food to support life came from the oak (120). The crown was bestowed upon a Roman citizen who had rescued a fellow citizen from death. The sculpture is believed to have been made in the early 1st century CE. It was housed in Verona until 1811 when it was bought by King Ludwig I and moved to the Glyptothek, "designed to house the royal collection of antique sculpture" (Metropolitan Museum of Art and Art Gallery of Ontario 267).
It is believed that the bust was commissioned by public officers working under the ruler of the Roman Empire. The bust reveals fine lines, every wrinkle and fault of the skin, and successfully creates depth and space in the sculpture. It has no foreshortening effect.
This sculpture, like many others from the Augustus era, influenced a lot of architectural drawings and Augustan relief sculptures, for example, those found at the Altar of the Augustan Peace. Roman architecture played a big part in creating new techniques and styles. These comprise detailed techniques for carving and casting sculptures.
Works Cited
Gellius, Cornelius A. The Attic Nights of Aulus Gellius. Vol. 6. Harvard U Press, 1927.
Koppelman, Susan, and Alison Franks. Collecting and the Internet: Essays on the Pursuit of Old Passions through New Technologies. Jefferson, NC: McFarland, 2009.
Littleton, Scott. Gods, Goddesses, and Mythology. Vol. 4. Marshall Cavendish, 2005.
Metropolitan Museum of Art and Art Gallery of Ontario. German Masters of the Nineteenth Century: Paintings and Drawings from the Federal Republic of Germany. Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1981.
