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Three - Sartorial Seduction

Silk, Embroidery, and Venusian Magic

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  04 March 2021

Rebekah Compton
Affiliation:
College of Charleston, South Carolina
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Summary

Chapter 3 examines the magical virtues of Venus’ clothing in Sandro Botticelli’s paintings of the Primavera, Venus and Mars, and Venus and the Three Graces. The goddess’s raiment correlates with descriptions of her celestial likeness, a figuration employed in image-based magic and discussed in the Picatrix and Marsilio Ficino’s Three Books on Life. Her white silk dress, gold-bejeweled embroidery, and rose-colored mantle also suggest secret virtues that could be channeled by contemporary viewers privy to this ancient wisdom tradition. The chapter explores Botticelli’s personal ties to the silk industry and investigates his techniques for rendering the material and spiritual power of Venus’ enchanting fashions.

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Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2021

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  • Sartorial Seduction
  • Rebekah Compton, College of Charleston, South Carolina
  • Book: Venus and the Arts of Love in Renaissance Florence
  • Online publication: 04 March 2021
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/9781108913393.004
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  • Sartorial Seduction
  • Rebekah Compton, College of Charleston, South Carolina
  • Book: Venus and the Arts of Love in Renaissance Florence
  • Online publication: 04 March 2021
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/9781108913393.004
Available formats
×

Save book to Google Drive

To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Google Drive.

  • Sartorial Seduction
  • Rebekah Compton, College of Charleston, South Carolina
  • Book: Venus and the Arts of Love in Renaissance Florence
  • Online publication: 04 March 2021
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/9781108913393.004
Available formats
×