Variant of The Venus Kallipygos in Brussels, Belgium

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The Venus Callipyge, also known as Aphrodite Kallipygos or Callipygian Venus, all literally meaning "Venus of the beautiful buttocks," is an Ancient Roman marble statue thought to be a copy of an older Greek original. In a classic example of anasyrma, it depicts a partially draped woman raising her light peplos to uncover her hips and buttocks, looking back and down over her shoulder perhaps to evaluate them. The subject is conventionally identified as Venus, though it may equally be a portrait of a mortal woman. The marble statue extant today dates to the late 1st century BC. The lost Greek original on which it is based is thought to have been bronze, executed around 300 BC, towards the beginning of the Hellenistic era. The provenance of the marble copy is unknown, but it was rediscovered missing its head in the early modern era. The head was restored first in the 16th century and again in the 18th century; the sculptor followed the earlier restoration fairly closely, making the restored head look over the shoulder drawing further attention to the statue's bare buttocks and thereby contributing to its popularity. In the 17th and 18th centuries the statue was identified as Venus associated with a temple to Aphrodite Kallipygos at Syracuse discussed by Athenaeus in his Deipnosophists. The statue was copied a number of times, including by Jean-Jacques Clérion and François Barois. This object is part of "Scan The World". Scan the World is a non-profit initiative introduced by MyMiniFactory creating a digital archive of fully 3D printable sculptures artworks and landmarks from across the globe for the public to access free. Scan the World is an open source community effort; if you have interesting items around you and would like to contribute email stw@myminifactory.com to find out how you can help.