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Lot Essay
The Venus and Cupid depicted here is a small scale version of a larger sculpture now in the Louvre colloquially called "Venus at Arms" (see no. 456 in A. Delivorrias, et al., "Aphrodite" in LIMC, vol. II). Formerly in the Borghese collection, the Louvre example depicts the goddess of love wielding a sword, her infant son cupid by her side, trying on her oversized helmet.
The connection between love and war is richly illustrated in both Roman art and literature. Perhaps the most eloquent quotation on the subject comes from the Roman poet Ovid's 9th elegy in the first book of the Amores, the poet's treatise on the triumphs and tribulations of romance: "Trust me, my Atticus, in love are wars; And Cupid has his camp, as well as Mars."
The connection between love and war is richly illustrated in both Roman art and literature. Perhaps the most eloquent quotation on the subject comes from the Roman poet Ovid's 9th elegy in the first book of the Amores, the poet's treatise on the triumphs and tribulations of romance: "Trust me, my Atticus, in love are wars; And Cupid has his camp, as well as Mars."