Aphrodite Wearing a Bird Headdress

The goddess is nude except for a headdress with a bird’s head protome. She stands in a Praxitelian S-curve: her left hip juts outward, her weight rests on her left leg, and her right knee is bent. Her breasts are indicated by simple hemispheres, and her navel is rather prominent; her torso and thighs are voluptuous. Her right arm, bent at the elbow, extends outward from her body and holds something cylindrical, possibly the remains of a wreath that is now broken (1). Her left arm, bent at the elbow, is lifted upward and holds a small sphere, probably an apple, between the thumb and index finger. Her head turns downward and to the right; her face is clearly modeled with delicate eyes, brows, nose, mouth, and chin. Her hair is parted in the center and pulled away from her face, with a lock of hair hanging down onto either shoulder. A dove or vulture head is present at the front of her flat headdress, and from the front, the curve of the headdress resembles wings (2). Feathers are indicated on the body of the cap with incised lines and punched dots.