Ancient Venus. Beauty of the Stone Age: "Paleolithic Venuses

On Monday I was going to tell about this sculpture that stands near the Latvian Academy of Arts, but there was so much material that I drowned in it. Looks like it needs to be split up. In painting, for example, there is no more iconic painting, replicated in reproductions and adorning a variety of objects, even far from art, like Leonardo da Vinci's Mona Lisa. She's already a part modern subculture in its new capacity. There are several such iconic objects in sculpture. The most famous, of course, is the armless ancient Venus de Milo. But the glory of another Venus in the Western world is no less. So, get acquainted - Venus of Willendorf. Now in Riga. What is it - I will tell under the cut.

Back view:

The history of this Paleolithic Venus from Austria needs to be told in order to better understand why she looks the way she does.

First, a little historical digression.
From the height of our time, it is difficult to imagine that already in the Stone Age people aspired to art, to reproduce their own kind. About 40 thousand years ago, during the Great Ice Age, an event occurred that marked the beginning of new page in the history of mankind. A man appeared on the ice-free expanses of Europe modern type (Homo sapiens- a reasonable person).

The era of the Upper (Late) Paleolithic began (from the Greek "palailos" - ancient and "lithos" - stone). Its upper limit is determined by time global warming(about 10 thousand years ago), when the territory of prehistoric Europe was completely freed from the ice shell.

Causes cultural revolution, which occurred about 40,000 years ago among the Cro-Magnons who came to Europe, remain mysterious. This was the second breakthrough in cultural development Homo sapiens (the first occurred over 70,000 years ago in South Africa). It is curious that the first of two revolutions, during which shell necklaces and abstract geometric patterns, approximately coincides in time with the grandiose eruption of the Toba volcano in Sumatra. The second revolution occurred immediately after the arrival of sapiens in Neanderthal-inhabited Europe. In the Aurignac era, not only painting and sculpture appeared for the first time, but, probably, music as well, as evidenced by bone flutes found in southern Germany. Outside of Europe, all this appears several millennia later.

The Upper Paleolithic era is a period of major changes in material culture ancient man: the technique of processing stone and bone becomes more perfect, the methods of firing clay material are mastered, art. The hand-drawn and sculptural images of both animals (mammoth, reindeer, cave lion, etc.) and humans that have survived to this day are amazing in their craftsmanship and accuracy.

Among the masterpieces of Paleolithic art, a special place is occupied by sculptural images of naked (rarely in clothes) women found at sites, the absolute age of which is 27-20 thousand years ago. All of them are executed in bright realistic manner and convey, as a rule, a naked woman with emphasized signs of sex.

These figurines are carved from bones, tusks, and soft stones (such as steatite, calcite, or limestone). There are also figurines sculpted from clay and fired, which is one of the ancient examples known science ceramics.

Such figurines, called by archaeologists all over the world "Paleolithic Venuses", were found in France, Belgium, Italy, Germany, Austria, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Ukraine, but especially a lot of them were found on the territory of Russia. The range of finds extends far to the east up to the Irkutsk region, that is, to most of Eurasia: from the Pyrenees to Lake Baikal. Most of the finds belong to the Gravettian culture, but there are also earlier ones related to the Aurignacian culture, including the "Venus of Hole Fels" (discovered in 2008 and dated at least 35 thousand years ago); and later, already belonging to the Madeleine culture.

For the first time, a fragment of such a figurine was discovered by archaeologists in 1894 in the town of Brassempuis in France. Later, similar figurines were discovered in 1908 in Central (Willendorf, Austria), and then in 1923 in Eastern Europe(Kostenki 1 ( upper layer) - Russia). To date, more than a hundred "Venuses" have been discovered, most of which are relatively small in size - from 4 to 25 cm in height.

Whom could these figurines with their hypertrophied volumes of the chest, abdomen and hips represent? Many assumptions have been made by famous archaeologists. Some believed that these figurines were symbols of fertility and the unification of the family (Peter Efimenko), others saw them as attributes of hunting magic (Dr. and. N. Sergey Zamyatnin), others - mistresses of the forces of nature and even "superhuman female beings" (Academician Alexey Okladnikov).

The semantics of the Venus of the Paleolithic has not yet been deciphered. Some researchers see in them images of a deity, an ancestor, a symbol of fertility, as they emphatically express the idea of ​​motherhood, fertility. Others believe that this is an image of participants in ancient magical rites aimed at good luck when hunting or images of real women, different in their constitution and emotional mood.

Another version: in its upper, often featureless "head" part, this image symbolizes the heavenly, masculine nature of the deity, and at the bottom represents his earthly, feminine essence. The discovery of this material embodiment of the philosophical concept of "a single but dual deity" somewhat changes our understanding of the spiritual life of ancient people, whom we habitually call "primitive".

Well said here:
Another range of Upper Paleolithic finds that have a meaning that goes beyond this ordinary this-worldly life are numerous figurines, reliefs and drawings of women. Of course, this plot was at first interpreted quite materialistically, as a manifestation of the erotic inclinations of ancient man. But, it must be confessed, there is little eroticism in most of these images.

The figurines of the Paleolithic "Venuses", related mostly to Aurignac and disappearing in the Madeleine, show that the interest in women thirty thousand years ago was very different from the present. The face, arms and legs are very poorly worked out in these figures. Sometimes the whole head consists of one magnificent hairstyle, but everything that has to do with the birth and feeding of a child is not only carefully spelled out, but, it seems, exaggerated. Huge ass, hips, pregnant belly, saggy breasts.

Paleolithic Venus is not the graceful creature that captivates the imagination of the modern man, and not the flourishing femininity of the Louvre Aphrodite, but the mother of many children. These are the most famous "Venuses" from Willendorf (Austria), Menton (Italian Riviera), Lespyuju (France). Such is the remarkable relief from Lussel (France), on which a woman standing in the front holds in her right hand, bent at the elbow, a massive horn, very reminiscent of cornucopias, but most likely this is a sign of the presence of the Bison God.

Female figurines made of stone and bone, faceless, but with emphasized signs of a feminine, giving birth nature, were very widespread in the Upper Paleolithic throughout Northern Eurasia. Almost certainly, they reflected the maternal womb of the earth reviving to furnace life. Vestonice "Venuses" are especially interesting because they are made of clay and fired. These are almost the first samples of terracotta in the history of mankind (25,500 lots ago).

Paleolithic "Venus" of the Aurignacian time:
a) from Willendorf, Austria. Height 11 cm. Limestone;
b) from Sapinnano, Italy. Height 22.5 cm. Serpentine;
c) from Lespugue, France. Height 14.7 cm. Mammoth bone;
d) from Dolni Vestonice, Czech Republic. Terracotta

And it’s not that the Paleolithic artist simply couldn’t or didn’t want to depict feminine beauty. On several monuments we can see that he did this perfectly in principle - an ivory head (Brassempui), a relief in the La Madeleine cave, discovered in 1952. But the figurines and images of "Venuses" by no means set out to glorify the perfection of female beauty.

Most likely, these "Venuses" were images of "Mother Earth", pregnant with the dead, who still have to be born again by eternal life. Perhaps the essence depicted in this way was the genus itself in its course from ancestors to descendants, the Great Mother, always producing life. In Ukraine, in Gagarin, seven such figurines were located along the walls of the Madeleine dugout. They stood in special niches. It certainly was an object of worship.

For the guardian of the clan, individual "personal" signs are not important. She is a womb eternally pregnant with life, a mother eternally feeding with her milk. It is unlikely that the thoughts of the ancients rose to high abstractions, but if they buried their dead in the ground, then they believed in their resurrection, and if they did, they could not help but worship the Mother-Raw-Earth, which gives food, life and rebirth.

The hopes of the Cro-Magnons were not limited to the earth, they aspired with their souls to the heavenly God-Beast, the all-powerful giver of life. But from the experience of everyday life, they knew perfectly well that the seed of life must find the soil in which alone it can germinate. The seed of life gave the sky, the soil - the earth. Worship of Mother Earth, so natural among agricultural peoples, actually turns out to be older than agriculture, since the goal of worship for ancient man was not the earthly harvest, but the life of the future age.
http://storyo.ru/history_rel/05_06.htm

In general, you understand ...

As an esoteric symbol:

Here is one of such theories about Makosh (see the link below): http://www.litsovet.ru/index.php/gallery.view?gallery_id=14092

I want to say that modern stereotypes of beauty, following the example of Twiggy, do not allow us to notice that the figure of these Venuses may not necessarily be fat or pregnant. For example, compare:

In general, it's all about proportions:

People of art also worship these Venuses, various monuments are erected to the same Venus from Willendorf, in Austria, the USA and other countries:
http://www.donsmaps.com/willendorf.html
http://www.mikebikes.org/07trip/traismauer.htm
Monument in Austria: http://www.travel-club.com.ua/index.php?mo=image&id=5699
Tom Chapin "Manna" 2007, DeCordova Sculpture Park, Lincoln, Massachusetts
Reminiscent of Neolithic fertility statuettes like the Venus of Willendorf, Manna makes reference to the duality of base desires and the richness of life sustaining gifts.
From DeCordova Sculpture Park's homepage. http://www.flickr.com/photos/hanneorla/2761242150/
From papier-mâché http://laurietobyedison.com/discuss/?p=3417
http://artbydelilah.blogspot.com/2010/10/venus-of-willendorf-project.html
Venus of Willendorf - made of old recycled Halogen lamps http://asketchaday.blog.com/

Venus from halogen bulbs and Venus on prostheses:

Venus with bunny ears and a hole in her side:

This is also an artistic interpretation of the forms of the Venus of Willendorf:

Some believe that she had such hands:

Venus of Willendorf is often carved out of ice http://foto.mail.ru/mail/sergii_59/21/1428.html
http://www.twinoaks.org/community/leaves/leaves-94/lvs94-p5.html

But the Riga monument, in my opinion, is one of the most interesting:

Venus as a bachelor's work
Jun 9, 2010
Such a sculpture appeared yesterday near the Academy of Arts. This bachelor's work of one of the students is called "Venus of Willendorf"
http://olgai2.livejournal.com/62685.html
http://www.bezhin-lug.net/viewtopic.php?f=17&t=103&start=180#p7113

Initially, Venus was inside the building of the Academy of Arts:
And this, I think, is simply an unsurpassed masterpiece of domestic sculpture! The author has created a copy of the famous Willendorf Venus - a figurine, which is about 3000 years old. How much grace and grace!
True, the original, located in the Vienna historical museum(see photo), has a size of about 11 cm. But we are used to thinking big! There should be a lot of good Venus!
My colleague specifically decided to pose so that everyone could appreciate the scale of the work. Nightmare and horror, to be honest! And it still stood on the square in front of the academy for quite a long time!
March 2011
http://gaviota15.livejournal.com/25751.html

Venus was seen and mall in Old Riga:
Shopping Mall with Venus of Willendorf Sculpture - Riga - Latvia http://www.flickriver.com/photos/adam_jones/5833438330/

And here is what the author of this sculpture herself writes (translated from English as best she could):
The Venus of Willendorf of the 21st century is my search for the depth of female identity. It is a [sculpture] 4.5 m high of glued corrugated sheets and covered with particles of mirror plastic, created as a kind of replica of a masterpiece of the Stone Age. The 21st century Venus of Willendorf is a conceptual work that allows women in our time to shine in her reflection, while Venus shines for herself. She is amazing with her feminine forms. It may even be shocking to some. This work is about a woman, but not about feminism.

How did human culture begin? When and in what form did he cease to be an animal and become a rational being? Obviously this happened when he began to reflect the world around him in spiritual images. And also try to reproduce them. After all, no animal has yet succeeded in doing this! But where did he start? From the images on the walls of the caves or something else was added to them? And, yes, indeed - he wanted to reflect what he saw and felt, and he did it. That's just for some reason in the sculptures of the obese "Venus of the Paleolithic" - the name that has become generalizing for the many prehistoric statuettes of women found, which have many common features and dating back to the era Upper Paleolithic. These figurines are mainly found in Europe, but they are also found far to the east, for example, at the Malta site in the Irkutsk region, so it can be said without exaggeration that their territory is the whole of Eurasia: from the Atlantic coast to the Siberian taiga region.

Prehistory of Bohemia, Moravia and Slovakia ( National Museum, Prague)

As is known, the culture of the Upper Paleolithic included several successive cultures: Aurignacian (existed in France and Spain 30-25 thousand years BC), Gravettes (35-19 thousand years BC), Solutrean - 19-16 thousand years BC. e. and Madeleine culture. There were cultures, of course, located in other territories, but most of the finds belong to the Gravettian culture, although early figurines were found that belong to the Aurignacian culture. This is the famous "Venus from Hole Fels" (made about 35 thousand years ago); and those figurines that experts attribute to the Madeleine culture.

"Venus from Petrakovica" and "Venus from Vestonica" are the national treasures of the Czech Republic. The originals are kept in a safe and transported in an armored vehicle under guard. (National Museum, Prague)

The material from which they are carved are bones (for example, mammoth tusks) and soft rocks (marl, limestone and the like). There are figurines made of clay and fire-fired, that is, ceramic, the oldest of its kind, since ceramics appeared only in the Neolithic era, and not even at its very beginning. Well, just to our XXI century more than a hundred such "venuses" were found, and all of them are small in size and have a height of 4 to 25 cm.

Figurines from the museum in Brno. Also copies...

The first "Venus" of the Upper Paleolithic era was discovered by the Marquis De Vibre in the town of Logerie-Basse in the Dordogne department in southwestern France as early as 1864. He gave the name of his discovery somewhat indecent - "Venus lewd", thus opposing it to the known by that time the famous "Venus Medicea". Over time, it turned out that it belongs to the Madeleine culture, that is, this creation is exceptionally ancient. The figurine had no head, no arms, no legs, but there was a clearly cut cut indicating its gender. The next recognized example of "venuses" happened to be the "Venus of Brassempuis", which Edouard Piette found in 1894 in the town of Brassempuis in France. At first, the term "Venus" was not applied to her, as well as to other similar figurines, but then four years later Salomon Reinach described a whole group of figurines of this type from the caves in Balzi Rossi, made of steatite, and it became obvious that they were necessary as to typify. Well, then, experts of the early 20th century, who studied primitive society, considered that these figures, quite possibly, embodied the prehistoric ideals of female beauty and called them "Venus" after the Roman goddess of love and beauty, adding only the word "Paleolithic" for purposes precise indication of the time of their creation.

"Venus of Galdenberg". (Austrian Natural Museum, Vienna)

September 2008 brought a new discovery to the scientific community: archaeologists from the University of Tübingen found a statuette of a woman from a mammoth tusk six centimeters high, called "Venuses from Hole Fels". Its age was determined at 35 thousand BC. e. IN currently- this is the most ancient pattern sculpture in general. True, there is still a figurine of "Venus from Tan-Tan", and it is estimated at 300-500 thousand years, but its dating is controversial and no exact verdict has been issued on it. The figurine from the Hole Fels cave in Germany is the most typical "Venus" with an accentuated large belly, a massive bust and wide hips.

"Venus Brassempuiska". (National Museum of Archeology, Saint-Germain en Lay, France)

And all these features are precisely the general typological features of the "Paleolithic Venuses". The most common are diamond-shaped figures, tapering at the top and bottom (head and legs, respectively), and as wide as possible in their middle part (belly and hips). The belly, buttocks, breasts and genitals are reproduced very carefully, while the face, for example, often does not exist at all (apparently according to the principle “do not drink water from the face” or “it is still dark at night”), but besides it, arms and legs are also missing , although not always. Venus has heads, but they are relatively small in size and devoid of any conspicuous details. Although sometimes a hairstyle or headdress such as a bathing cap is depicted on the head.

And here is a part of the body found in the same place where they found the “Brassempui Venus. Mammoth bone. (National Museum of Archeology, Saint-Germain en Lay, France)

It should be noted, however, that not all of the "Paleolithic Venuses" are so obese and have clearly emphasized feminine features. Also, not all of the figurines have no faces. But since there is a majority of statuettes that are very similar to each other both in style and in their main proportions, it can be argued conclusively that in the distant past a common concept for vast territories of a single artistic style or canon, according to which the chest and hips fit into a circle, while the figure itself is in a rhombus.

And this is their joint photo. Maybe they were somehow related to each other? Who knows? (National Museum of Archeology, Saint-Germain en Lay, France)

Some of the figurines, such as the Venus of Willendorf and the Venus of Lossel, were painted with red ocher. Why this was done today is impossible to explain in principle, but the concept of red coming from antiquity, as being a symbol of life, as “the color of blood”, can clearly point to some kind of rite. That is, they were made red for a reason, but with a specific and, most likely, magical purpose.

Well, these are all similar finds at Brassempuy station.

It is interesting that the bulk of the finds of "Paleolithic Venuses" date back to the Upper Paleolithic (mostly they belong to such cultures as the Gravettian and Solutrean). At that time, figures of obese forms were predominant. In the later time of the Madeleine culture, their forms are more graceful, and besides, they are distinguished by a much more careful study of details. They are usually distinguished purely geographically, in accordance with the classifications of Henry Delport, who simply named all those regions where one or another "Venus" was found. And it turned out that there are Pyrenean-Aquitanian (French-Spanish) Venuses, there is a Venus from the island of Malta, there is a Rhine-Danube region, Central Russian (burials of Kostenki, Zaraysk and Gagarino) and Siberian Venuses. That is, the area of ​​their distribution was exceptionally wide, but this also means that the people of that time had certain cultural ties among themselves.

However, then they depicted not only women, but also such horses ... (National Museum of Archeology, Saint-Germain en Lay, France)

Why exactly our ancestors needed them, we will never know. But it can be assumed that they could be talismans, symbols of fertility, or served as images of the Mother Goddess. It is also obvious that no practical application they could not have and, therefore, could only refer to objects of spiritual culture. They are found, however, not so much in burials as in caves and the remains of dwellings, so they were most likely not associated with the cult of the dead.

So, near the village of Gagarino in Lipetsk region, in an oval semi-dugout with a diameter of about 5 meters, seven such figures were found at once, which could well serve as amulets. In the parking lot near the village of Malta in the Baikal region, they were also found inside the dwelling. And, apparently, in the "houses" of that time they were not only not hidden, but on the contrary, they were in full view. So, when a person from a foreign tribe got into a dwelling, he saw them, and when he saw them, he took her image with him. Obviously, this is the only way to explain such a wide geographical distribution these figurines.

Alb-Donau region, 35,000 - 40,000 years old. (National Archaeological Museum Bad Würstenberg, Germany)

As for the obesity of the figurines, in the conditions of a half-starved existence, it was obesity that symbolized prosperity, fertility, and seemed beautiful. Not without reason, even in the twentieth century in Russian villages (and Mordovian, neighboring ones!) The beauty of a woman was defined as follows: “What a beautiful girl, full!” However, this kind of comparison and comparison is nothing more than the result of speculative conclusions, but by no means a scientifically proven fact.

Female figurine from Akroliti, 2800 - 2700 BC (Prehistoric Museum of Thira, Santorini Island)

Recently, two more very ancient stone artifacts (dating 500,000 - 200,000 years ago) were found, which, according to some experts, are also images of women. These are the "Venus of Berehat Ram" found in the Golan Heights, and the "Venus of Tan Tan" found in Morocco. But the question is: have they been processed by a person, or have they taken their form due to the influence of natural factors? So far, both of these assumptions have not been 100% proven.

Figurine from Berehat-Ram. Now it is clear why there is such heated debate about its origin?

A number of scientists who have studied the "Paleolithic Venuses" believe that between them and the images of women there are more late era Neolithic, and then the Copper Stone and Bronze Age, there is a direct connection. However, this point of view today is not consistent with that amazing fact that for some reason such images are absent in the Mesolithic era. What happened then that these figurines stopped making, and did it happen at all? Maybe they just changed the material, switched, say, to wood, and therefore all of them were not preserved? Who knows... the truth is always out there somewhere...

» (discovered in 2008 and dated at least 35 thousand years ago); and later, already belonging to the Madeleine culture.

These figurines are carved from bones, tusks, and soft stone (such as steatite, calcite, marl, or limestone). There are also figurines sculpted from clay and subjected to firing, which is one of the oldest examples of ceramics known to science. In general, to beginning of XXI century, more than a hundred "Venuses" were known, most of which are relatively small in size - from 4 to 25 cm in height.

Encyclopedic YouTube

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✪ Nude woman (Venus of Willendorf)

Subtitles

People like certain answers. We really want to understand what we see. Especially art historians. People create different things. We love creating art. One of the oldest pieces of art is a small female figurine. Sometimes it is called simply a naked woman. The whole world knows her as the Venus of Willendorf. And although this name does not make any sense, it says a lot about the prism through which our culture looks. She was found in 1908 in the Austrian village of Willendorf and given the name Venus. Its height is approximately 11 centimeters. It was created about 25 thousand years ago. She is truly ancient. It is kept in the Natural History Museum in Vienna, where we are now, in a dark glass cabinet lit from above. External storage looks like Greek temple. It says "Venus of Willendorf". There is also one button here. There are always a lot of kids in the science museum who love to push buttons. As they do so, the white light from above changes to red, and a soft flute melody plays. Of course, we have no idea what kind of music those people might have been listening to. This is just an attempt to fill in all the gaps. We know almost nothing about her. We don't know who made it or why. All we have is this figurine out of any context. It is more of an anthropological object than a work of art. Calling her Venus in honor of the ancient Greek goddess of love - Venus, we attributed a certain meaning to her. We believe that this is a figurine of the goddess, which is associated with childbearing and fertility. We don't know if this is true or not. It seems to me that we have a little more information, since this is only one of the female figurines of that era found. More precisely, the end ice age. This is one of the very first found sculptures depicting a human figure. It is curious that almost all the figurines found are female. Rather, all the figurines found so far are images of women. naked. But they differ from each other in form. Some have fuller breasts and buttocks. Maybe someday art historians and archaeologists will find male figurines. It's all guesswork. And all we can see is the figurine itself. Let's take a look at her. She has no feet and very thin arms that she folded high on her chest. She has no facial features. This is a recurring feature of almost all figurines found from this period. The hair is carefully crafted. Or perhaps a hat on her head. There is an assumption that this is a hat made of cane. Oh, here comes the music and the red light. Yes, the little girl just pressed the button. The hands are barely visible, but the fingers can be seen. Archaeologists who carefully studied the figurine suggested that the enlarged belly, chest and head are bulges that are due to the natural shape of the stone. The sculpture is made of limestone. She is symmetrical. And definitely not something that had to stand upright. As you mentioned, she has no feet. The figurine fits easily in the palm of your hand. There is a feeling that it was supposed to be held in the hand. Or carry it in your pocket, or something like that. Yes, it fits easily in the hand. We know that it was originally dyed with ocher, a red dye. Beyond that, it's hard to say anything else. And so we will continue to admire it. And art historians will continue to search for answers. And in some way, I'm sure we will always fall into the trap of trying to express our interests and needs, trying to understand this work of art. I'm not sure that we will fully understand it or restore its original meanings. Perhaps it is. Subtitles by the Amara.org community

Discovery history

The first statuettes of the Upper Paleolithic era depicting women were discovered around 1864 by the Marquis de Vibraye in Logerie Bass (Dordogne department) in southwestern France. Vibret called his find "Venus impudique" (Venus impudique), thus contrasting it with the "Venus modest" (Venus Pudica) of the Hellenistic pattern, one example of which is the famous "Venus Medician". The statuette from Laugèrie-Basse belongs to the Madeleine culture. She is missing her head, arms, and legs, but has a clear incision made to represent the vaginal opening. Another discovered and recognized instance of such figurines was the Venus Brassempuiska, found by Édouard Piette in 1894 in a cave dwelling on the territory of the town of the same name in France. Initially, the term "Venus" was not applied to her. Four years later, Salomon Reinach published a description of a whole group of steatite figurines from the Balzi Rossi caves. The famous "Venus  Willendorf" was found during excavations in 1908 in loess deposits in the Danube River Valley, Austria. Since then, hundreds of similar figurines have been found in the territory from the Pyrenees to Siberia. Scientists of the early 20th century engaged in the study primitive societies, considered them the embodiment of the prehistoric ideal of beauty and, therefore, gave them a common name in honor of the Roman goddess of beauty, Venus.

In September 2008, archaeologists from the University of Tübingen discovered a 6 cm statuette of a woman made from mammoth tusk - "Venus from  Hole Fels", dating from at least 35 thousand BC. e. She is on this moment is the oldest example of sculptures of this kind and figurative art in general (the origin of the much more ancient figurine of Venus from Tan-Tan is controversial, although it is estimated at 300-500 thousand years). The carved figurine was found in 6 fragments in the Hole-Fels cave, Germany, and represents a typical Paleolithic "Venus" with a pronouncedly large belly, widely spaced hips and large breasts.

Description

Most of the statuettes of "Paleolithic Venuses" have common artistic characteristics. The most common are diamond-shaped figures, narrowed at the top (head) and bottom (legs), and wide in the middle (belly and hips). Some of them noticeably emphasize certain anatomical features of the human body: abdomen, hips, buttocks, breasts, vulva. Other parts of the body, on the other hand, are often neglected or absent, especially the arms and legs. The heads are also usually relatively small and lack detail.

In this regard, disputes have arisen regarding the legitimacy of using the term steatopygia, in relation to the "Paleolithic Venus". This question was first raised by Édouard Piette, who discovered the Venus Brassempuiska and some other specimens in the Pyrenees. Some researchers consider these characteristics as real physiological traits, similar to those observed in representatives of the Khoisan peoples. South Africa. Other researchers dispute this view and explain them as a symbol of fertility and abundance. It should be noted that not all Paleolithic Venuses are obese and have exaggerated feminine features. Also, not all figurines are devoid of facial features. Nevertheless, the appearance of statuettes, similar to each other in style and in certain proportions, allows us to talk about the formation of a single artistic canon: the chest and hips fit into a circle, and the entire image into a rhombus.

"Venus Willendorf" and "Venus Lossel" were, apparently, covered with red ocher. The meaning of this is not fully understood, but usually the use of ocher is associated with a religious or ritual act - perhaps symbolizing blood during menstruation or the birth of a child.

All the "Paleolithic Venuses" recognized by the majority belong to the Upper Paleolithic (mainly to the Gravettian and Solutrean cultures). At this time, figurines with obese figures predominate. In Madeleine culture, forms become more graceful and with more detail.

Notable examples

Name	age (thousand years)	place of discovery	material
Venus from Hole Fels	35-40	Swabian Alb, Germany	mammoth tusk
man-lion	32	Swabian Alb, Germany	mammoth tusk
Vestonica Venus	27-31	Moravia	ceramics
Venus Willendorf	24-26	Austria	limestone
Venus from Lespug	23	Aquitaine, France	Ivory
Venus Malta	23	Irkutsk region, Russia	mammoth tusk
Venus  Brassempuiska	22	Aquitaine, France	Ivory
Venus Kostenkovskaya	21-23	Voronezh region, Russia	mammoth tusk, limestone, marl
Venus Losselskaya	20	Dordogne, France	limestone

Venus, the artificial origin of which has not been proven

Name	age (thousand years)	place of discovery	material
Venus from Tan-Tan	300-500	Morocco	quartzite
Venus from Berehat Rama	230	Golan Heights	tuff

Classification

Of several attempts to create a classification of Upper Paleolithic figurines, the least controversial is that proposed by Henri Delporte, based on a purely geographical principle. He distinguishes:

Interpretation

Many attempts to understand and interpret the meaning and use of statuettes are based on a small amount of evidence. As with other prehistoric artifacts, they cultural significance may never become famous. However, archaeologists speculate that they may have been protective and good luck charms, fertility symbols, pornographic images, or even directly related to the Mother Goddess or other local deities. Female figurines, which are examples of Late Paleolithic portable art, do not appear to have had any practical subsistence use. For the most part, they were found on the sites of ancient settlements, both in open sites and in caves. Their use in burials is much less common.

At the site of the Late Paleolithic era near the village. Gagarino in the Lipetsk region, in an oval semi-dugout with a diameter of about 5 meters, 7 figurines of naked women were found, which are believed to have served as amulets-amulets. In the parking lot at Malta in the Baikal region, all the figurines were found on the left side of the dwellings. Most likely, these figurines were not hidden, but, on the contrary, were placed in a prominent place where everyone could see them (this is one of the factors that can explain their wide geographical distribution)

The noticeable corpulence of the figurines may be associated with a fertility cult. In the times before the advent Agriculture and pastoralism, and in a situation of lack of access to abundant food supplies, excess weight could symbolize the desire for abundance, fertility and security. However, these theories are not a scientifically indisputable fact and only the result of the speculative conclusions of scientists.

"Paleolithic Venuses": the oldest works of art

Since the dawn of civilization, a special place in people's lives has been played by art, which in ancient times had a ritual character. Many are familiar with the so-called "Paleolithic Venuses" - figurines of the Upper Paleolithic era, depicting obese or pregnant women. The most significant of these findings will be discussed below.

Prehistoric figurines of women, which scientists called the general concept of "Paleolithic Venuses", were found mainly in Europe, but the range of such finds extended to most of Eurasia up to Lake Baikal in Eastern Siberia.

Most of the Western European finds belong to the Gravettian culture dating back to 28-21 millennium BC. e., but figurines were found that belonged to the earlier Aurignacian culture (33-19 millennium BC).

Such ancient works of art include Venus from Hole Fels, discovered in a cave of the same name near the German city of Schelklingen. This is the oldest of the "Paleolithic Venuses" known to science, its age is determined between 35 and 40 thousand years. This figurine is recognized oldest work figurative art. Venus of Swabia, as this figurine is also called, is made of woolly mammoth tusk and represents the figure of an obese woman with a bright accent on her breasts and vulva. The figurine was preserved without some fragments, however, from the surviving part, it is clear to scientists that it was used as a pendant.

In our time, more than a hundred "Paleolithic Venuses" are known, which are made of soft rocks of stone, bones, tusks, and even molded from clay using firing. The size of such figurines varies from 4 to 25 cm. Sometimes such “Venuses” were also found in the form of bas-reliefs (Venus of Lossel).

One of the first "Paleolithic Venuses" found was Venus Brassempuiska, or "Hooded Lady". She was discovered near the French village of Brassempouy in 1892. Only a fragment depicting a woman's face remained from the statuette. This image is considered one of the earliest realistic images. human face generally.

In 1908, another famous "Paleolithic Venus" called the Venus of Willendorf was found in the Danube Valley in Austria. The figurine, 11 cm high, was carved from oolitic limestone. This material is not found in this area, and this is talking about the movements of ancient people. The figurine is tinted with red ocher and dates back to about 24-22 millennium BC. e. Venus of Willendorf is also made in an exaggerated manner, has a clearly defined navel, genitals and breasts, on which hands are folded.

The oldest ceramic figurine known to science is the Vestonice Venus, found in Moravia (Czech Republic) in 1925. Its age is dated within 29-25 millennium BC. e. It is noteworthy that during the tomographic study of the figurine, an ancient imprint of a child's hand, left before firing, was found on it.

The cultural significance of these figurines may never be known, as in the case of other prehistoric artifacts, scientists operate on only a small amount of facts in an attempt to interpret their meaning. Archaeologists suggest that the "Paleolithic Venuses" could be talismans, amulets and amulets, symbols of fertility and the ability of women to give viable offspring. Such figurines were rarely found in burials, most often they were found at the sites of ancient settlements.

• • The subject and basic concepts of the history of religion
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• Early and Middle Paleolithic
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  • Religious representations of the Middle Paleolithic. Mousterian burials
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  • Bear cult in the Middle Paleolithic
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• Religion of the Upper Paleolithic
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"Paleolithic Venuses"

Another range of Upper Paleolithic finds that have a meaning that goes beyond this ordinary this-worldly life are numerous figurines, reliefs and drawings of women. Of course, this plot was at first interpreted quite materialistically, as a manifestation of the erotic inclinations of ancient man. But, it must be confessed, there is little eroticism in most of these images.

The figurines of the Paleolithic "Venuses", related mostly to Aurignac and disappearing in the Madeleine, show that the interest in women thirty thousand years ago was very different from the present. The face, arms and legs are very poorly worked out in these figures. Sometimes the whole head consists of one magnificent hairstyle, but everything that has to do with the birth and feeding of a child is not only carefully spelled out, but, it seems, exaggerated. Huge ass, hips, pregnant belly, saggy breasts.

Paleolithic Venus is not the graceful creature that captivates the imagination of the modern man, and not the flourishing femininity of the Louvre Aphrodite, but the mother of many children. These are the most famous "Venuses" from Willendorf (Austria), Menton (Italian Riviera), Lespyuju (France). Such is the remarkable relief from Lussel (France), on which a woman standing in the front holds in her right hand, bent at the elbow, a massive horn, very reminiscent of cornucopias, but most likely this is a sign of the presence of the Bison God.

And it’s not that the Paleolithic artist simply couldn’t or didn’t want to depict female beauty. On several monuments, we can see that he did this perfectly in principle - an ivory head (Brassempui), a relief in La Madeleine cave, discovered in 1952. But the figurines and images of "Venuses" by no means set out to glorify the perfection of female beauty.

The finds made in Ukraine by K. Polikarpovich clarify the meaning of the strange figurines. In the sanctuary on the Desna, in addition to skulls and tusks of a mammoth, in addition to howler monkeys, he also found a female figurine made of ivory of the Venus type. It used to be attached to something and was part of the mortuary sanctuary.

Most likely, these "Venuses" were images of "Mother Earth", pregnant with the dead, who still have to be born again to eternal life. Perhaps the essence depicted in this way was the genus itself in its course from ancestors to descendants, the Great Mother, always producing life.

In Ukraine, in Gagarin, seven such figurines were located along the walls of the Madeleine dugout. They stood in special niches. It certainly was an object of worship. For the guardian of the clan, individual "personal" signs are not important. She is a womb eternally pregnant with life, a mother eternally feeding with her milk. It is unlikely that the thoughts of the ancients rose to high abstractions, but if they buried their dead in the ground, then they believed in their resurrection, and if they did, they could not help but worship the Mother-Raw-Earth, which gives food, life and rebirth.

The hopes of the Cro-Magnons were not limited to the earth, they aspired with their souls to the heavenly God-Beast, the all-powerful giver of life. But from the experience of everyday life, they knew perfectly well that the seed of life must find the soil in which alone it can germinate. The seed of life gave the sky, the soil - the earth. Worship of Mother Earth, so natural among agricultural peoples, actually turns out to be older than agriculture, since the goal of worship for ancient man was not the earthly harvest, but the life of the future age.

Mircea Eliade is very mistaken when, in the introduction to Sacred and Worldly, he states: thanks to the discovery of agriculture. It is equally obvious that the pre-agrarian nomad society was not able to feel the sacredness of Mother Earth as deeply and with the same force.

Differences in experience are the result of economic, social and cultural differences, in a word - Stories" - "Obvious" is not yet true, a religious scholar should have known this better than others. The cults of the Mother Earth hunters of the Upper Paleolithic force us to assume that the religious is not always a product of the social and economic, but is sometimes their cause and premise.

For a better understanding of all the ambiguity of cause and effect in human culture especially interesting are the "venus" figurines from Dolnja Vestonice. Vestonice "Venuses" are made of clay and fired. These are almost the first samples of terracotta in the history of mankind (25,500 years ago). The ancient mystic must have tried to capture in the material itself the great idea of ​​the earth uniting with the heavenly fire to receive the heavenly seed. Maybe a lightning strike that melted the soil brought him to these images. At least twelve millennia separate these clay figurines of Mother Earth, specially fire-fired, from household ceramics that appeared in the early Neolithic.

Very characteristic and discovered in the late 1950s under the canopy of the rocky shelter of Angles-sur-l "Anglin (Angles-sur-l" Anglin, Vienne, France) is the scene of the Madeleine time. Three women, with clearly underlined signs of their gender, stand close to each other. One - with narrow girlish hips, the other - pregnant, the third - old, flabby. The first stands on the back of a bison, whose tail is raised and whose head is bowed, showing that it is depicted in the excitement of the rut.

Doesn't this relief reflect the rhythm of life and emphasize that for the Cro-Magnon this life was not an accident, but a divine gift, a seed of God, which must be properly disposed of in order to gain eternity? Or maybe this is the first of a long series of images of the Great Goddess in her three images - an innocent girl, a mother and an old woman-death, images - so characteristic of later humanity? Death, withdrawal from life in this case turns out not to be a complete disappearance, but only a stage of being, followed by a new conception by a divine seed, a new birth.