Venus Italica

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Canova's first marble Venus stands proudly in Florence at the Palazzo Pitti, a masterpiece renowned as the Venus Italica. Ordered by Ludovico I, King of Etruria, in 1804 to replace the Medici Venus taken by the French for Napoleon's Musée, this replica is believed to have been acquired from Canova's studio during the third marquess of Londonderry's visit to Rome in 1823. It resided at Londonderry House in London until its departure in 1962.