Venus Italica (Bust)

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Antonio Canova's renowned Venus Italica was commissioned as a direct replacement for the famous Medici Venus, seized by Napoleon in 1802 and relocated to the Louvre. The Medici Venus itself is a 1st Century BC copy of a masterpiece crafted by Cleomenes of Athens. Canova's Venus Italica has been regarded as one of his most intricate and sophisticated creations, deliberately refusing to replicate the stolen Medici Venus and instead imbuing it with his distinctive Neoclassical flair. Poet Ugo Foscolo penned in 1811, "When I beheld this sublime work by Canova, I was overcome with a thousand longing glances, for truly, if the Medici Venus is an exceptionally beautiful goddess, this is an exceptionally beautiful woman." Due to its immense popularity, numerous replicas were crafted. Interestingly, rather than directly copying from ancient sources, Canova would mold a clay model from which plaster casts were made, considering this the original masterpiece of art.