Where Is Medici Venus? See It at Uffizi Gallery, Florence

Q: Where can I see the Medici Venus?

In the Tribuna at the Uffizi Gallery in Florence, Italy. For centuries it was considered one of the six finest surviving ancient statues and a must-see on the Grand Tour.

Q: Was it originally white?

No. A 2012 restoration discovered large patches of gold leaf on the hair, red paint on the lips, and pierced ears that once held earrings. Grand Tour travelers had mentioned gilded hair for centuries, but it wasn't widely acknowledged until conservators confirmed it.

Q: Was it ever stolen?

Napoleon seized it and shipped it to Paris in 1803. It was returned to Florence on December 27, 1815, after his fall. Earlier, Pope Innocent XI had allowed it to leave Rome for Florence in 1677 because he believed it 'stimulated lewd behavior.'

Q: How old is it?

It's a 1st-century BCE Roman marble copy of a lost Greek bronze original. It stands 1.53 meters (5 feet) tall. The arms were restored by sculptor Ercole Ferrata, whose elongated Mannerist fingers weren't recognized as stylistically wrong until the 19th century.

The Medici Venus is a 1st-century BCE marble of Aphrodite, a Roman copy of a lost Ancient Greek bronze. She stands in the Venus Pudica (modest Venus) pose, one hand covering her chest and the other her groin. The figure is 153 cm tall and has been at the Uffizi Gallery in Florence since 1677.

For centuries she was considered the most beautiful ancient sculpture in the world, and she was the prize of the Medici collection. Napoleon seized her in 1802 and took her to Paris. She was returned to Florence after Waterloo in 1815. Canova's Venus Italica was commissioned as a replacement during her absence.

In the Tribuna at the Uffizi Gallery in Florence, Italy. For centuries it was considered one of the six finest surviving ancient statues and a must-see on the Grand Tour.

No. A 2012 restoration discovered large patches of gold leaf on the hair, red paint on the lips, and pierced ears that once held earrings. Grand Tour travelers had mentioned gilded hair for centuries, but it wasn't widely acknowledged until conservators confirmed it.

Napoleon seized it and shipped it to Paris in 1803. It was returned to Florence on December 27, 1815, after his fall. Earlier, Pope Innocent XI had allowed it to leave Rome for Florence in 1677 because he believed it 'stimulated lewd behavior.'

It's a 1st-century BCE Roman marble copy of a lost Greek bronze original. It stands 1.53 meters (5 feet) tall. The arms were restored by sculptor Ercole Ferrata, whose elongated Mannerist fingers weren't recognized as stylistically wrong until the 19th century.

Medici Venus

Details

Where to See It

The Artist

More by Ancient Greek (Unknown)

Lion felling a bull, from a marble pediment

Marble statue of a lion

Fragment of a Funerary Naiskos (Monument in the Shape of a Temple)

Marble Statue of a Kouros (Youth)

Also at Uffizi Gallery, Florence

Landscape drawing for Santa Maria della Neve

Primavera

The Discovery of the Body of Holofernes

Thebaid

About Medici Venus

Own Art Like This