Love in 3rd century BC: It was a lot like now

Page last updated at 03:36 GMT, Tuesday, February 5, 2013 - 08:36 EST

AFP:

A statue of Eros sleeping is on display at the Metropolitan Museum in New York, February 4, 2013

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NEW YORK — A plump, naughty looking winged baby with a bow and arrow: sounds like the illustration on a Valentine's Day card, right? Wrong: it's a two-thousand-year-old statue on show in New York.

A new exhibit at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, "Changing Image of Eros, Ancient Greek God of Love, from Antiquity to Renaissance," demonstrates that love as we know it doesn't just last forever -- it's been around forever too.

The centerpiece of the exhibit, which opened last week and runs through June 23, is a remarkable, life size bronze sculpture of Eros shown as a sleeping baby.

His chubby legs are draped over a stone. One of his wings lies flat, the details of every feather visible, and the other is tucked up underneath.

Unusually for Greek art, the god's eyes are shut. And in a touching nuance, the baby's mouth rests open, while his left hand lies limp, having dropped his famous bow.

"He's in the midst of his labors and he's taking a nap," curator Sean Hemingway told AFP.

Read the whole story: AFP