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National Gallery of Art

  • Visit

    • Plan Your Visit
    • Accessibility
    • Visiting with Kids
    • Food and Drink
    • Tours and Guides
    • Explore the Campus

    Admission is always free

    6th and Constitution Ave NW 
    Washington, DC 20565

    East building

    Must-Sees at the National Gallery

    Make the most of your visit

    Learn more

  • Exhibitions & Events

    • Exhibitions
    • Calendar
    • Kid-Friendly Events

    America’s 250th

    Celebrating American art and artists

  • Art & Artists

    • Artworks
    • Artists
    • Stories
    • Fun and Games
    • Educational Resources
    • Research

    Open Call

    Artists Reimagining the Collection

    Meet the 50 makers selected from more than 1,600 submissions

Utility

  • Support
  • Shop
  • Become a Member

  • Visit

    • Plan Your Visit
    • Accessibility
    • Visiting with Kids
    • Food and Drink
    • Tours and Guides
    • Explore the Campus

    Admission is always free

    6th and Constitution Ave NW 
    Washington, DC 20565

    East building

    Must-Sees at the National Gallery

    Make the most of your visit

    Learn more

  • Exhibitions & Events

    • Exhibitions
    • Calendar
    • Kid-Friendly Events

    America’s 250th

    Celebrating American art and artists

  • Art & Artists

    • Artworks
    • Artists
    • Stories
    • Fun and Games
    • Educational Resources
    • Research

    Open Call

    Artists Reimagining the Collection

    Meet the 50 makers selected from more than 1,600 submissions

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  • Support
  • Shop
  • Become a Member

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    3. Duc de Cambacerès
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    Duc de Cambacerès

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    Artwork

    A seated woman with upswept hair is flanked by two chubby male children in this free-standing, white marble sculpture. In this photograph of the sculpture, the woman’s body faces us, and the rectangular base on which they sit is angled slightly away from us to our left. The woman sits in half of an oversized, upturned clam shell with her legs angled to our right. Her near leg is outstretched while the other bends at the knee. Her toga-like garment leaves her near breast exposed and wraps around her back to cover her lower torso and lap. She looks down to the winged boy closest to us, to our left, who half-stands and half-kneels at her side. He holds her hand and kisses the back of it, as he turns his face toward us. Two doves near the boy nestle in the drapery on which the woman sits, their beaks interlocked. On the woman’s other side, to our right, the second boy sits in the shell by her feet. He leans back to look up at her with his mouth open, as he grabs her garment with one hand. Two sea creatures with gaping mouths support the undulating curves of the shell.
    Etienne-Maurice Falconet, Venus of the Doves, marble, Samuel H. Kress Collection, 1952.5.101

    Venus of the Doves

    Venus of the Doves

    Etienne-Maurice Falconet · · marble ·  Accession ID  1952.5.101

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