Bulgaria - Greece

Nov. 11, 1970 - APHRODITE FACES TEST OF IDENTITY: Scientific tests may be made in an attempt to identify the battered marble head at the British Museum, which Prof. Iris Love, an American archaeologist, claims is from a long-lost statue of Aphredite made by Praxiteles in the 4th century B.C. The problem is that Prof Love must find a large pieces of the original Aphrodite statue for comparative tests to be made. So far all she has found on the site of Aphrodite's Temple at Cnidus, Turkey, is a small part of an unidentified hand and forefinger. The head, minus chin, mouth, nose and most of the hair style, found at Cnidus in 1858, went on public view at the British Museum yesterday in a corner of Room 12, housing friezes from the Mausoleum of Halicarnassus and a lion from a tomb at Cnidus. It was non-commitally described as Marble Head of a Goddess because the Museum disputes that the head belonged to Aphrodite, although it was at one time thought to be from a copy of the statue and bears her name on the base. Photo Shows:- The controversial head. British experts believe that the find is Persephone, another deity and daughter of Demeter, the Greek earth-mother goddess

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Although Aphrodite Aphrodites Archaeologist Battered Believe Belonged Claims Cnidus Comparative Controversial Deity Demeter Described Disputes Experts Forefinger Friezes Halicarnassus Identify Identity Iris Mausoleum Minus Persephone Praxiteles Prof Tests

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