This fertility figure, with it's exaggerated bust and anatomical details, is thought to be at least 35,000 years old.
The sculpture was discovered in the Hohle Fels Cave in Germany, which is how the tiny figurine gained the name "The Venus of Hohle Fels."
It is believed that the figure was suspended from a pendant, as instead of a head a small ring is carefully carved above it's broad shoulders.
The artefact is presumed to have been made by modern humans even though Neanderthals were still present in Europe at this time.
"We find all kinds of things in our caves - musical instruments, all kinds of ornaments, mythical representations of lion-men, not to mention all the different stone tools, bone tools, ivory tools, [and] antler tools. But we have no human bones that really tell us one way or the other who made these artefacts. I assume they were made by modern humans," said Nicholas Conard, professor of Early Prehistory at Tübingen University.
(Reference, BBC News)
Throughout history, venus figurines have played prominently in prehistoric art. These ancient tributes to the female form have been an inspiration for my own figurative works. Here are some of examples of my own fertility sculptures:
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