Aphrodite of Knidos by Praxiteles

In Ancient Greece, people created their own gods with the sculpture. One of the most

important examples of these sculptures is Aphrodite’s statue, located in Knidos because of its

huge size. At the same time, the statue of Aphrodite of Knidos was accepted as the first life-

sized naked female sculpture. Also, Aphrodite is the goddess of feminine beauty and love for

the Ancient Greece. Archaeological finds and sculptural works among the finds are of great

importance in understanding and evaluating past civilizations. Art and stylistic features

reflected by the sculptures; like other works, it plays an important role in perceiving and

explaining the socio-cultural structures and beliefs of the societies they have conquered.

While evaluating the artistic activities of the people of Ancient Greece, it is important to try to

understand the purpose of the objects they created. It should not be forgotten that the works

exhibited in museums today were used in daily life when they were made and are a part of

life. Along with that, I chose Aphrodite’s statue as my example in order to portray the lives of

Ancient Greece and how important the sculptures are since the sculpture was the most famous

work of the Athenian sculptor, Praxiteles.

During the 4th century B.C. Praxiteles sculpted at least two famous Aphrodites, one

half-naked (as in a Roman copy from Aries, now in the Louvre), the other nude. The

latter was the most famous statue of the goddess in antiquity and was commissioned by

the city of Cnidus between 364 and 361 B.C. Praxiteles's Cnidian Aphrodite was a

perfect figure ronde. One of her attributes is a certain shyness (Marcovich, 1996, p. 44).

In the light of aforementioned quotation, it can be obviously said that the statue is one of the

most famous and perfect figures in the history. The statue of Aphrodite of Knidos was

accepted as the first life-sized naked sculpture. It has inspired artists for centuries, from

Roman times to the Renaissance. Considering the work of Praxiteles, the Knidos Aphrodite
shows the depiction of a woman coming out of the bathroom, taking her genital area with her

right hand and the towel next to her with the other hand.

Praxiteles, build two statues of Aphrodite for the Island of İstanköy. In one of them, the

goddess figure is covered, while in the other the goddess is naked. The habitants of the island

do not want to buy the naked one and the statue was bought by Knidos city. The residents of

Knidos did not want to sell the statue even if when they are poor. The statue of Aphrodite of

Knidos is superior for not only Praxiteles’ works but also for the whole world.