Numismatic and History Discussion Forums > Roman Coins Discussion Forum
Venus with a bra??
EmpressCollector:
Thanks for your input, Curtis.
I think that Jimwho's theory is the most plausible so far about the purpose of this.
It wasn't limited to just a single reverse die, though. On the three examples I was able to find online, they are all from different dies.
curtislclay:
In the Lexicon Iconographicum Mythologiae Classicae, I find that there was an artistic type of Aphrodite under the Greeks, Venus under the Romans, standing nude binding a cloth band around her breasts. With her l. hand she holds one end of the band against her chest below the breasts, while with her r. hand she wraps the other end of the band around her body. The type is known from several life-size statues and more smaller statuettes.
Perhaps knowledge of this type influenced the engraver of Julia Titi's reverse dies.
None of the few representations in the Lexicon of Venus leaning on a column as in the coin type, however, show her with breasts bound.
EmpressCollector:
Very interesting, Curtis. Could you possibly post a scan of that statue. I went to Google Images and searched "Aphrodite" to find it. I gave up after viewing 600 images and couldn't find it. It IS amazing how many dogs, cats, rats and even hedgehogs are named "Aphrodite" and posted on the web, though ;)
LordBest:
I did the same and couldnt find it either. :( I checked all my statue archives and such and i dont have any like it, amongst 60 different Venus and Aphrodite statues.
LordBest. 8)
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