JC'S Presents: Phryne

Hi there, your fella JC here, bringing this time a story of a legendary woman of ancient Greece who was a important and influence for centuries of artworks. #introduction #the-representation-of-aphrodite-in-earth #the-trial #the-legend #phryne-in-arts Introduction Phryne (real name Mnesarete, born in 4th century BC) was an ancient greek hetaira from Boeotia, lived mostly in Athens, famously for her beauty, was famous for two major reasons,; being the model for sculptors and painters ideal of beauty in the classical art, and for a trial she was accused (little spoiler she was acquitted) Hetaira, translated as courtesan, was a female companion, they were free women, highly educated, they were well-versed in arts, philosofy and oratory, is still on debate by historians if hetairas involved sexual working, anyway hetaira had more privileges in ancient greek society, specially in Athens in wich even athenians citizen married women had a subordinate status to their husband and cannot participate in many public activities in wich hetairas could, and also they could control their own finances and become wealthy. In the case of Phryne, it is speculated she was from very poor origin and became very wealthy, she was the richest woman in Athens at that time, there are mentions she helped and financed the reconstruction of Thebes's walls (after a war/battle that destroyed it). Fun fact, her nickname "Phryne" means toad, there is two explanation of her nickname, she is called by that for her olive skin tone (although other mentions said her skin was pale) and the other explanation is a ironically nickname due toad's ugliness. The representation of Aphrodite in earth In ancint Greece, hetarai often modelled for artist, and Phryne is the most famous case, in wich she was the model to portrait Aphrodite , the goddess of love and beauty. Most famously artist associated with her was Praxiteles, one of the best sculptors of the ancient world, who made size sculptures of her, there is one of that artworks surviving, Aaphrodite of Knidos (Roman marble replica) Other important artist associated with her was the distinguished painter Apelles who worked for Alexander the Great. Apelles watched Phryne walking naked into the sea at Eleusis (during the fesival of Eleusina and Poseidonia), this sight was the inspiration of his painting Aphrodite Anadyomene (Aphrodite rising from the sea), sadly that art piece has not survived, yet recorded in Pliny the Elder's text, centuries laters, Renaissance artist who read Pliny tryed to emulate Apelles's Aphrodite/Venus, most famous Sandro Botticelli's Birth of Venus is the best example. The trial She was charged by a kind of blasphemy consisting of introducing a new god and organize a ritual procession, it is unclear wich was the particular issue with this supposed blasphemy, what it is very speculated is that the motivations of thoses charges were by a persnoal quarrel or political motivation. The prosecutor was Euthias, a man who had fame of made prosecutions for personal gain, and a former lover of Phryne. The man who defended Phryne at the jurors was Hypereides, a well-known orator, wich fragment of his speeches had survived, greatly admired in antiquity. The legend Hypereides speech wasnt convincing the jurors, so his ultimate move to convince the jurors were; boobs!. So there is basically 3 version of this event, Hypereides removed Phryne clotihing showing her bare chest to the jurors, or Phryne herself showed her breast. Most of the text mentioning this events are some years after, so there is the posibility that none of the bare chest thing happened. Anyway Phryne was acquitted, and saved her life, in the "topless" versions of the events it was mentioned or suggested she was facing a death sentence, historians debate she wasnt sentenced to death, posibly to exile, lose her free citizen status and property. Why she won the trial? in ancient Greece there was a concept named " kalokagathia ", the ultimate ideal of beauty and good, the physical perfection mirrored divine favor and moral virtue. Hypereides argument was "how something this beauty could be wrong doing?" (and possibly pointing her breast), in the mind of the jurors there was the superstitious fear that condemning her would be a sin against the goddess of beauty herself!. Phryne in arts She kept a quite fame during roman times, centuries later had quite few mentions during Renaissance, wasnt very popular, most of the highlights went to Lucreatia and Cleopatra who where seen as heroic. During Neoclassicism (18th-century) was quite popular, the interest in her increased, she kept being popular during orientalism movement and in 19th-century. paintings: - Salvator Rosa , Phryne and Xenocrates 1662 - Angelica Kauffmann 's Praxiteles Giving Phryne his Statue of Cupid, 1794 - Gustave Boulanger 's Phryne (1850) - Jean-Baptiste-Henri Deshays , Phryne Before the Areopagus mid-18th century -Angelica Kauffman, Phryne Seduces the Philosopher Xenocrates 1794 - Henryk Siemiradzki , Phryne at the Poseidonia in Eleusis , 1889 -Jacques-Louis David, Phryne Before the Judges 1818 -J.M.W. Turner, Phryne Going to the Public Baths as Venus: Demosthenes Taunted by Aeschines 1838 Literature: - Charles Baudelaire 's poem "Lesbos", from Les Fleurs du mal - Rainer Maria Rilke "Die Flamingos" Music: -Phryné by Camille Saint-Saëns Photography: - Marie-Christine Leroux as Phryne, photographed by Nadar for Gérôme's Phryne Before the Areopagus 1860–61 Films: - Il processo di Frine " ("The Trial of Phryne"), Alessandro Blasetti, 1952. - Frine, cortigiana d'Oriente ("Phryne, the Oriental Courtesan"), Mario Bonnard, 1953. - La Venere di Cheronea ("The Venus of Chaeronea"), Giorgio Venturini and Viktor Tourjansky, 1957.