The statue of Aphrodite with Eros represents a quite coherent replica of the original Capitoline Venus, apart from the addition of the small funerary Eros extending the meaning to the whole sculpture. When it entered the Medici collections after a purchase from the Colonna family, the statue lacked arms, head and right leg. The Medici had it integrated by sculptor Silla in 1584 and the statue thus acquired its present aspect as faithful reproduction of the mentioned archetype.
The sculpture is likely to have never been restored since the 1584 intervention. Therefore, besides removing the usual dirt deposits, a restoration would now allow to assess the conditions of ancient integrations and fractures repairs, such as those of Aphrodite’s thighs. The same would apply to Eros, with a careful examination of the putty used for ancient integrations. The presence of two marbles with different color and porosity, as especially evident in Aphrodite’s feet and the bottom part of Eros, will have to be taken into consideration to give back the surface a chromatic quality as homogeneous as possible.
