Venus of Tolentino

Venus of Tolentino
Venus of Tolentino—scansione da Tuttitalia, enciclopedia dell'Italia antica e moderna (volume Marche) Sansoni-De Agostini, 1963
Current location: Museo Archeologico Nazionale delle Marche, Ancona Inventory Number 8803 Support: An elongated sub-triangular stone, with a cross-section that tends towards planoconvex, smooth but with some natural depressions. Raw material: chert Length 127 mm, width 41 mm, thickness 21 mm Weight: 150 g Conservation: There are no modern changes State of the surfaces: very glossy. Presence of deposits of calcium carbonate (pseudomycelia) and holes from lichens (perithecia). Colour (Munsell): 10 YR 5/6. 10 YR 4/3 Front side The piece is engraved with a female figure, in a frontal position, with the head of herbivore in profile, turned towards In the left and upward. The muzzle is elongated, with rounded ends and slightly convex.

The Venus of Tolentino is a Venus figurine that was displayed with the Venere di Frasassi at the National Archaeological Museum of the Marche from November 27, 2009 to March 30, 2010. The figurine was originally found in 1883 in a clay pit east of the town of Tolentino in the Marche region of Italy. It was donated to the Museum by Count Gentiloni Silverj Aristide.

The piece has been exposed to weathering, probably in the bed of a stream. It was carved from thin chert about 13 cm long, and is dated to be more than 5,000 years old. Both ends are chipped from use, indicating that the stone was probably used as a tool striker, or to crush seeds. The carved drawing depicts the body of a woman with zoomorphic features. It has legs, breasts, and a geometric vulva. The body is surmounted by a herbivorous animal head (possibly a cow, bovid, or equid), with the continuation of an auroch head on the reverse side. The auroch face is squat, without a clear indication of the ears and horns. The eye, the nostril and the mouth are outlined.

Resources

• Wikipedia, Venus figurines