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Lot Essay
Aimé Péretié (1808-1882), was a collector, antiquarian and also a dragoman and chancellor of the French Consulate in Beirut. From there he directed and sometimes personally assisted in archaeological excavations, sending off objects to auction in Paris, donating to the Louvre and selling to private collectors. Acquiring a whole range of classical antiquities, Péretié is known to have amassed a considerable collection of bronze Venuses, many of them ending up with one of his most important clients, named Louis de Clercq, as is the case with this example.
Aphrodite is depicted here holding out her right hand, which originally would have held a patera. In her left hand she holds an apple. Her head, turned to the right, gazes down slightly and is framed by centrally-parted hair caught up in a chignon at the nape of her neck and surmounted by a silver crescentic diadem.
In the myth of the Judgement of Paris, Aphrodite was one of three goddesses, along with Hera and Athena, who vied for the title of the fairest. This contest began when Eris, the goddess of discord, tossed a golden apple inscribed with "To the Fairest" among the gods at a wedding feast. The goddesses claimed the apple, and Zeus appointed Paris, a Trojan prince, to judge their beauty. Each goddess offered a bribe: Hera promised power, Athena offered wisdom and victory in battle, and Aphrodite tempted Paris with the love of Helen, the most beautiful mortal woman. Paris awarded the golden apple to Aphrodite, which led to him abducting Helen and igniting the Trojan War.
Aphrodite is depicted here holding out her right hand, which originally would have held a patera. In her left hand she holds an apple. Her head, turned to the right, gazes down slightly and is framed by centrally-parted hair caught up in a chignon at the nape of her neck and surmounted by a silver crescentic diadem.
In the myth of the Judgement of Paris, Aphrodite was one of three goddesses, along with Hera and Athena, who vied for the title of the fairest. This contest began when Eris, the goddess of discord, tossed a golden apple inscribed with "To the Fairest" among the gods at a wedding feast. The goddesses claimed the apple, and Zeus appointed Paris, a Trojan prince, to judge their beauty. Each goddess offered a bribe: Hera promised power, Athena offered wisdom and victory in battle, and Aphrodite tempted Paris with the love of Helen, the most beautiful mortal woman. Paris awarded the golden apple to Aphrodite, which led to him abducting Helen and igniting the Trojan War.