When discovered this three-sided relief was thought to be the seat from a statue of a colossal god, but is more probably a fender in front of an altar.
The subject of the main relief seems to be the birth of Aphrodite. According to the myth, the goddess was born from the foam of the sea on the beaches of Cyprus, and we can clearly see the pebbles that Aphrodite’s attendants are standing on. The side panels show women playing pipes and burning incense.
However, the depiction of the birth of Aphrodite is a rare, if not unique subject in Classical art, so we cannot be sure. To show female figures semi-nude was then also unprecedented in large-scale Greek sculpture
Rome, Terme National Museum 3
From Malpieri of Rome
Lippold: Griechische Plastik, 118 (n.14), pls. 42.1, 43.1&4
Richter: Sculpture & Sculptors of the Greeks (1950), 169, figs.474-6
Paribeni: Catalogue of Greek Sculpture of the 5th Century BC in the National Museum (Terme), Rome (1953), 12
Colin, G: Revue Archéologique 25 (1946), 23-, 139-
Rhys Carpenter: Memoirs of the American Academy in Rome XVIII (1941), 41-, pls. 17-19
Found in 1887.
Villa Ludovisi, Rome
