Northern Italy, 16th century / c. 1500–1520
Venus with a Burning Urn
The Cleveland Museum of Art catalogs Venus with a Burning Urn as sculpture (Northern Italy, 16th century · c. 1500–1520).
Venus is the Roman goddess of many virtues, including Love, Charity, Fertility, and Victory. Here, Venus is represented as the goddess of Charity.
A CLOSER LOOK
The museum identifies this sculpture as gilt bronze.
The museum's collection notes: Venus is the Roman goddess of many virtues, including Love, Charity, Fertility, and Victory. Here, Venus is represented as the goddess of Charity. She wears a crown, as Charity is often depicted as the Queen of the Virtues. The flaming lamp in Venus's left hand was also a symbol of Charity in Venice, where this piece is thought to have originated. The bent fingers of her right hand are bent suggest that Venus may have once held another object. Renaissance sculptors often looked back to antiquity when producing monumental and small bronze statues. The small bronze cabinet piece comes into Italian art during this time, bringing ancient gods and
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The Cleveland Museum of ArtVenus with a Burning UrnOriginal explanation based on the sources above. Images carry their own reuse terms.