Torso of Aphrodite at The State Hermitage Museum, St Petersburg

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In the middle of the 4th century BC, Praxiteles, a renowned Greek sculptor, boldly depicted Aphrodite, the goddess of love and beauty, naked. This daring innovation sparked such controversy that the citizens of Kos, who had commissioned the statue, flatly refused to accept it. The rejected masterpiece was subsequently acquired by the citizens of Cnidus in Asia Minor, where the Aphrodite of Cnidus became a timeless embodiment of perfect feminine beauty, inspiring countless generations of artists in Greece and Rome. A Roman copy in the Hermitage collection dates back to an early Hellenistic original, and only the torso of this masterpiece has survived. Its forms convey the unbridled beauty and harmony of the mature female form. To cater to the prevailing tastes of the 3rd century BC, a Hellenistic sculptor crafted the figure with lighter, more slender proportions and softer lines than Praxiteles's work.