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An elegant marble copy of the 1st century Roman Aphrodite of the Temple of Hercules Victor in Tivoli, Italy, also known as the Aphrodite of Frejus. The cult of Aphrodite was established by Julius Cesar upon claiming this sacred goddess as his divine ancestor. Statues of this "Venus Genetrix (mother)" type were popularly produced during the 1st and 2nd centuries AD and again early in the Neoclassical movement. Aphrodite was the ultimate icon of feminine beauty and love in ancient Rome. Born from the foam of the sea, she was considered the most attractive woman in the world and said to inspire lust in all manner of man and nature. She is thought by some scholars to be the first figure shown in the nude in Western art history. In this depiction, her polished torso is enrobed in a wet and clinging chiton, one breast exposed. The fabric hangs in long, deeply carved folds from her left arm and down her back. The figure is posed in the Venus Genetrix in which the goddess reaches behind her shoulder to raise a mantle over her head, while holding an apple in her other hand. The body is positioned halfway between standing and walking, demonstrating the sensuous curves of a contrapposto figure.