Astarte Syriaca
Dante Gabriel Rossetti (1828-1882)
1877
Oil on canvas
H 185 x W 109 cm
Manchester Art Gallery
1891.5; purchased from Mr Clarence E. Fry, 1891
As the comment on Art UK explains, "Astarte was the ancient Syrian goddess of love, more malign than Venus. Her features are based on those of Jane Morris, with whom Rossetti was obsessively in love." The torch-bearers either side of her gaze raptly upwards as the globes of sun and moon overlap the central, crowning star of Venus.
Image acquisition and formatting by Jacqueline Banerjee. [Click on the image to enlarge it.]
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