The statue represents a young girl before puberty. But the thin dress, fitted close to the body, tied with a belt and falling off her shoulders is a typical costume of Aphrodite, and beautiful young women in general. Her flirting posture is also too early for her age. The statue thus depicts a young girl, but in the manner of Aphrodite, as a beautiful woman. The conflict between the two reflects a personal tragedy: the girl died before becoming a woman. The statue’s head, now lost, probably preserved the individual features of the little girl.
Marble analyses conducted by Danielle Decrouez (Geneva, Museum of Natural History) and Karl Ramseyer (University of Bern, Institute of Geological Sciences) have shown that the statue was made of Göktepe marble. Click here for the detailed results.
