BEZZUOLI, Giuseppe
(b. 1784, Firenze, d. 1855, Firenze)

Venus Crossing the Sea on a Shell

1830s
Oil on wood panel, 33 x 41 cm
Private collection

Venus, born of the sea, is depicted lying in an ample scallop shell, with a red blanket and white sheet, part of which acts as a sail, as she skims across the waves not far from the shore. Her provocative pose reflects that of the ancient marble Borghese Hermaphrodite (Paris, Musée du Louvre), a version of the Hellenistic composition much celebrated since its discovery in Rome in 1617-18.




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