Archaeological Museum of Bologna

The state of conservation of the statue is unfortunately very fragmentary, but it is equally possible to identify with certainty the subject: the goddess Aphrodite, just arisen from the sea waves, tightens the hair dripping of water; Anadiomene in fact derives from greek and means one who emerges.
This scene, painted by the great painter Apelles on a table stored at Coo and then transferred by Augustus in the Roman forum, inspired numerous statues of the goddess, of which are know examples in two version: naked and semi-draped.

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Despite the irregular state of repair, it is nonetheless possible to identify the statue as being the goddess Aphrodite as she emerges from the sea, grasping her soaking wet tresses (“Anadyomene” actually means “she who emerges”). This scene, painted by the great Greek artist Apelles on a panel found in Kos, then transferred by Augustus to the Forum in Rome, inspired numerous statues of the goddess, of which two versions are known: the nude and the semi-draped, as the Bologna item must have been. The work, despite being marred by large gaps, is exquisite enough to have aroused the admiration of Antonio Canova, Italy’s greatest Neoclassical sculptor and author of countless illustration of the goddess Venus.

Provenance: University Collection (formerly part of the Marsili Collection)
Datation: 1st century BC
Material: White marble
Dimensions: height cm 62
Inventory #: ROM 1920