Venus of Willendorf: description, size, style. Venus of Willendorf 21st century

2024 Author: Leah Sherlock | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 05:25

Venus of Willendorf is considered, as they would say now, the standard of beauty of the Paleolithic era. A small figurine depicting a full-bodied woman was found in Austria in 1908. The age of Venus, as scientists suggest, is 24-25 thousand years. This is one of the most ancient cultural objects ever found on Earth.

Paleolithic beauties

Similar figurines, archaeologists began to discover since the middle of the century before last. All of them depict women with three-dimensional forms and date back to the Upper Paleolithic. The territory on which such finds were made is quite extensive: from the Pyrenees to Siberia. All figurines (their total number is several hundred) are today united by the name "Paleolithic Venuses". Initially, the name of the ancient Roman goddess of beauty was used as a joke: the figurines differed too much from the accepted canons of the image of the female body. However, it has taken root and is used everywhere today.

Characteristics

Venus of Willendorf and similar figurines havea number of parameters that allow them to be combined into one category of art objects. These are magnificent forms, a small head, pronounced sexual characteristics, the frequent absence or slight study of arms and legs. Many figurines have a diamond-shaped silhouette. The most voluminous part of the figure is the stomach and buttocks. The legs and head are much smaller, as if forming the tops of a rhombus.

There is a debate among researchers about whether such a structure is an image of real body shapes found in some peoples of Africa (steatopygia), or is it an element of a fertility cult.

Venus of Willendorf: Description

One of the Paleolithic figurines was discovered near the city of Willendorf in Austria. In 1908, excavations were carried out here on the site of a former brick factory, and now there is a small monument in the form of an enlarged copy of the found figurine.

Venus of Willendorf is very small in size - only 11 cm. She is a naked woman with overly enlarged breasts, large buttocks and a voluminous belly. The head of Venus, in comparison with the body, is quite small and does not have traced facial features, but it is decorated with braids carefully worked out by the ancient master. The woman's hands are located on a huge chest and also differ in small size, the feet are missing.

Age

Today you can find statements that the Venus of Willendorf is the oldest image of a woman found. However, the situation is somewhat different. VenusWillendorf, according to scientists, was created about 24-25 thousand years ago. Of course, the age is considerable. However, there are also more ancient figurines: Venus from Hole Fels (35-40 thousand years), Venus Vestonica (27-30 thousand years).

In addition, at the end of the last century, two figurines were discovered, whose origin is still unclear. If it is proved that they were created by human hands, and not by erosion and weathering, then Venus from Tan-Tan and Venus from Berehat-Ram will become the oldest figurines (300-500 and 230 thousand years respectively) depicting a woman.

Material

Venus of Willendorf is made of oolitic porous limestone. It is interesting that such material is not found in the area where the figurine was found. For some time, the origin of Venus remained a mystery to researchers. The employees of the Museum of Natural History in Vienna, where the figurine is kept today, were able to lift the veil of secrecy. The limestone was probably mined near the Czech city of Brno, which is almost 140 km from Willendorf. Stranskaya Skala is located here, the limestone massif of which is very close in composition to the material of Venus. It remains unknown whether the figurine was made near the city of Brno or near Willendorf, where the material was delivered.

Another interesting point - the figurine was originally covered with red ocher. This fact speaks in favor of the assumption about the ritual purpose of the figurine. Most often, religious objects were covered with ocher.

Faceless

The absence of any elaboration of facial features also testifies in favor of this version. In ancient times, it was believed that the face is the external expression of the personality. Deprived of his figurines embody something more than just people. Probably, the Venus of Willendorf and similar figurines were ritual objects of the fertility cult, glorifying childbearing, fertility, abundance. The enlarged abdomen and buttocks could also symbolize support and security.

We must not forget that in the distant times of our ancestors, food was obtained by hard work, and hunger was a frequent event. Therefore, women with magnificent forms were considered well-fed, he althy and rich, capable of giving birth to strong and hardy children.

Perhaps the Paleolithic Venuses were the incarnation of the Goddess or were used as talismans, attracting good luck, symbols of fertility, stability, security and the continuation of life. Most likely, scientists will never know the exact answer about the purpose of the figurines, since too much time has passed since their appearance and too little evidence of that era remains.

Modern attitude

People who see Venus from Willendorf for the first time react to it in different ways. For some, she causes genuine admiration as a symbol of freedom from the stereotypes of female beauty that exist today (Barbie doll, 90-60-90 and so on). Sometimes Venus is even called a symbol of the female innermost essence. Someone at the sight of the figurine is frankly frightened of the image because of its unusualness. In a word,as is the case with most valuable works of art, the Venus of Willendorf, whose construction style is common to all Paleolithic figurines, evokes the most conflicting emotions.

For some contemporary artists, she is a source of inspiration. One of the results of the creative processing of the image was the so-called Venus of Willendorf of the 21st century - a statue 4.5 meters high, the work of one of the graduates of the Academy of Arts in Riga. Like the prototype, it received mixed reactions from critics and the general public.

It is undeniable that the Venus of Willendorf is one of the oldest works of art, a witness to a bygone era. It helps to penetrate for a moment into the distant past, to realize how changeable the norms and ideals of beauty are, how deeply the roots of the culture familiar to us today go. Like everything strange and unusual against the background of an established way of life and thinking, it calls to look at oneself and history from a slightly different angle, to doubt the truth of beliefs and dogmas, to let in creative inspiration and get rid of the dead and ossified.