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1894, archaeologist Edouard Piette discoveredVenus of Brassampui”, also known as “the hooded woman”. This sculpture, excavated in southwestern France and dating to around 25,000 BC, is the oldest realistic depiction of a human face. The figures’ foreheads, noses, and eyebrows are carefully carved in relief, and their hair is arranged in neat geometric patterns. But what happened to the mouth? Or is it the eyes? I’m not sure.
Venus was carved from mammoth ivory, probably using flint, and is only 3.65 cm tall. For some, this means a major development in the plastic arts. Or as a historian Simon Sharma have proposedthis figurine may be the “dawn of the concept of beauty” in human culture.
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Source: Open Culture – www.openculture.com
