The classical Goddess Venus emerges from the water on a shell, blown towards shore by the Zephyrs, symbols of spiritual passions. The naked goddess is a symbol not of earthly, but spiritual love, in the manner of an ancient marble statue slim and long-limbed, with harmonious features. The anatomy of Venus and various subsidiary details do not display the strict classical realism of Leonardo da Vinci or Raphael. Most obviously, Venus has an improbably long neck, and her left shoulder slopes at an anatomically unlikely angle. According to the Greek myth Aphrodite (or Venus, as is her Roman name) was born when the titan Chronos ("the time") castrated Uranus, his father, whose severed genitals fell into the sea and fertilized it. Aphrodite was born from the foam and by a giant cockle was taken ashore.
Did you know?...
A scene in the 1962 James Bond film Dr. No with Ursula Andress rising from the sea was inspired by the painting.
