I travelled to see Venus and Cupid By Georg Petel at the Oxford Ashmolean Museum in England. Come join me there too. Welcome to Art, Culture & Travel with me, Anthony King.
“Venus & Cupid” is a 40cm tall ivory sculpture created by Georg Petel between 1620-1624. TheGerman sculptor was born in 1601.
Inspired by Rubens’ drawings, it was once owned by Rubens himself before being sold to George Villiers, Duke of Buckingham, in 1626. Petel, renowned for his ivory carvings, worked across Munich, the Southern Netherlands, Genoa, and Augsburg. The sculpture, a reinterpretation of the Aphrodite of Knidos, was crafted during Petel’s visit to Rubens in 1624. It’s speculated to be the same piece listed in George Villiers’ collection in 1635, highlighting the close relationship between Petel and Rubens.
By Anthony King (c)