The Aphrodite of Knidos and Her Successors: A Historical Review of the Female Nude in Greek Art PDF
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The Aphrodite of Knidos and Her Successors The Aphrodite of Knidos and Her Successors A Historical Review of the Female Nude in Greek Art Christine Mitchell Havelock Ann Arbor THE UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN PREss Firstpaperback edition 2007 Copyright © by the University of Michigan 1995 All rights reserved Published in the United States of America by The University of Michigan Press Manufactured in the United States of America e Printed on acid-free paper 2010 2009 2008 2007 765 4 A elP catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Havelock, Christine Mitchell. The Aphrodite of Knidos and her successors : a historical review of the female nude in Greek art / Christine Mitchell Havelock. p. cm. Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN 0-472-10585-X 1. Praxiteles, 4th cent. B.C. Aphrodite of Cnidus. 2. Aphrodite (Greek deity)-Art. 3. Marble sculpture, Greek. 4. Nude in art. I. Title. NB163.V62C575 1995 730'.92-dc20 94-39539 CIP ISBN 0-472-03277-1 (pbk :alk.paper) ISBN 978-0-472-03277-8 (pbk :alk.paper) No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, or otherwise without the written permission of the publisher. In memoriam Eric A. Havelock 1903-88 j Preface This book proposes to take a new look at some of the most famous icons of Western art: Greek statues of the female nude-in particular those that represent the goddess Aphrodite. My main hope was to try to understand what these figures meant to the Greeks themselves and to create some order out of the chronological chaos that engulfs them. Throughout, I have tried to keep in mind the history and meaning of the female nude in postantique art and the contributions of feminist analysis. The Aphrodite of Knidos, the leading Greek example, required the most detailed reexami nation, and while I was carrying this out, it became apparent that I had to confront the male-biased scholarship of both the past and the present. My thinking and research have been assisted by my friends, former colleagues, and students at Vassar College. Elaine Pike and Tom Hill have given generously of their time and expertise in the preparation of the manuscript. For assistance and suggestions, I am indebted to Curt Beck, Tom Cole, Marni Kessler, Hugh Lloyd-Jones, Karen Lucie, Brian Lukacher, Charles Mercier, and S.B. Pomeroy. The staff of the Vassar Library, especially Elizabeth Oktay and Kathleen Kurosman, have been unfailingly helpful. I have enjoyed courteous curatorial assistance from Carmen Arnold Biucchi (American Numismatic Society), Elena Augerimou (National Mu seum, Athens), Joan R. Mertens (Metropolitan Museum, New York), David Mitten (Fogg Museum of Art, Cambridge), Alain Pasquier (Musee du Louvre), Ellen D. Reeder (Walters Art Gallery), Cornelius Vermeule (Boston Museum of Fine Arts), Michael Vickers (Ashmolean Museum), and Lucilla Burn and Susan Walker (British Museum), Karol Wight (J. Paul Getty Museum), W.D.E. Coulsen, former director, was very help ful during my stay at the American School of Classical Studies in Athens. I warmly thank Pamela Askew, Natalie Kampen, Miranda Marvin, and Susan Murray for criticism and insights on earlier drafts or portions of the book. Molly Myerowitz-Levine kindly read it at the penultimate stage, and I profited enormously from her comments and from discussions with Preface VIll her. I am most profoundly indebted to Brunilde Ridgway for encourage ment, suggestions, and criticism. I am grateful to the National Endowment for the Humanities for a Fellow ship for College Teachers and a Travel to Collections Grant to conduct my research. Contents Illustrations Xl Introduction 1 1. The Aphrodite of Knidos 9 2. Praxiteles' Place in the History of Greek Art 39 3. The Late Hellenistic Period: The Rediscovery of the Knidia 55 4. Aftermath: Works Inspired by the Knidia 69 5. Aphrodite in Context 103 Conclusion 133 Works Cited 145 Index 155 Plates 159
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