7/18/2023 0 Comments Judgment of parisTwo critical moments in this story are depicted on the Athenian vase shown below. His elopement with the wife of Menelaos was the cause of the Trojan War. Paris chose Aphrodite, seduced by the prospect of Helen and her famed beauty. The Trojan prince Paris, deep in thought, sits on a rock in front of the three goddesses, accompanied by the messenger god Hermes.Įach goddess is clearly identifiable: Hera with her diadem and scepter Athena with her armor and standing proudly before them both, Aphrodite, unabashedly displaying her body to full effect. The Judgment was a popular subject in Pompeian wall painting, an example of which is shown here. Few were immune to her seductive charms, and Zeus punished her for the many improper unions that she caused.Īphrodite's manipulative character is most apparent in the story of Helen, queen of Sparta, whom she offered as her bribe in the Judgment of Paris, inciting ten years of dreadful war at Troy. Paris appears as a Swiss country gentleman who has just presented Venus with the apple as her prize. He chooses Venus for her prize, the love of the most beautiful woman in the world, Helen of Greece. A letter from Bertin to Fabre, dated Septem. 2 1 Also known as Bertin l’Ain (Bertin the Elder), Louis-Franois Bertin was the editor of the Journal des Dbats. They appear before Paris while he sleeps and attempt to bribe him to influence his choice. (Heim Gallery, Paris) by 1976 Purchased by Virginia Museum of Fine Arts (VMFA), Richmond, Virginia in December of 1976. Mythological tales vividly relate Aphrodite's involvement in matters of the heart, and these have contributed greatly to our conception of the goddess as primarily concerned with love and sex. The Judgment of Paris 1517-18 Tempera on canvas, 223 x 160 cm Öffentliche Kunstsammlung, Basel This scene from Greek mythology is transported in a highly personal fashion to a German forest with contemporary figures. Paris, son of King Triam of Troy, is selected to choose which of the goddess Minerva, Venus and Juno, is the fairest. The escapades of Aphrodite and her offspring were a popular subject in Greek and Roman art.
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