The Venus Figurines

We've all seen them, those ancient fertility figures which are called "Venus" figures. Most of them do not look like what has come to be known as "Venus", but they hold their own beauty. They hold their own power.......women's power, Goddess power.

These figures, which have been found all over Europe date back to the Paleolithic era. Marquis de Vibraye, in the 19th century, was the first to call them "Venus" figures. With their large breasts, stomachs, thighs and butts, it is apparent that they have nothing whatsoever to do with the Roman Goddess Venus, and it seems almost certain to have been said with tongue firmly in cheek.

To me, it is just these physical characteristics that make these figures so appealing. To those of us who honor the Goddess without, and within, ourselves, they represent Her as the Creatrix, the Mother of the World. Each line, each curve shows us fertility, shows us life, shows us where life begins, and ends, with Her.

I am always struck by the inherent beauty in each of these figurines. They don't represent beauty by today's standards, obviously, but yet they represent the beauty of each and every woman. Any woman who knows where, and how to look, can see herself reflected there. When I look at the Venus of Willendorf, I see myself, a Goddess-sized woman, fairly comfortable in her own skin. I see my breasts, my tummy, my everything. I tell myself "I am Goddess" and believe it completely when I look at Her.

I am among those who believe that these figures are representations and proof that early worship revolved around the Goddess and the cycles of Gaia. Then there are those who believe that I, and others like me, are just grasping at these Venus figures to prove there was/is/always will be Goddess. I don't believe we are grasping because we know what we know. Goddess is here.

While the Venus of Willendorf is, by far, the most famous, there are others; more than I realized. I would like to share the Venus figures that I have found. All of the figures are all from 28,000-25,000 BCE. They were found in different parts of Europe, in eerily similar shapes and forms.

Each one of these photos is Goddess; each one of these photos is us. I have deliberately left the photos a bit larger so that you can really see them. Feel Her Power. Feel Your Power.

 

 

Venus of Willendorf
Found 1908
Willendorf, Austria

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Venus of Laussel 
Found 1911
Southwestern France
(Note the horn She holds with 13 notches)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Venus of Lespugue
Found 1922, in a cave at Lespugue in the Pyrenees

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Venus of Dolni Vestonice 
Found in 1925
Moravia, Czech Republic

 

 

 

 

 

Venus of Brassenpouy
Found 1892
Southwestern France
(Pieces believed to go together)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Venus of Galgenberg
Found in 1988
Stratzbury, Austria (close to Willendorf)
Believed to be 30,000 years old

 

 

 

 

 

 

Venus of Yuliyevich
Found 1930
Bryansk, Western Russia

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Venus of Monruz
Found 1991
Monruz, Switzerland

 

 

 

 

 

 

Venus of Tan Tan
Found 1999
Tan Tan, Morocco
300,000-500,00 years old

 

 

 

 

 

Venus of Hohle Fels
Found 2008
Cave of Hohle Fels
Schelklingen, Germany

 

 

 

 

Venus of Moravany
Found 1938
Slovakia

 

 

 

 

 

Venus of Savignano
Found 1925
Modena, Italy

 

 

 

 

 

 

Venuses of Gagarino
Six figures found
Voronezh Region, Russia

 

 

 

 

Venuses of Mal'ta
19 figures found
Siberia

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

May you be blessed by the Goddess.

)O(

~Susan Morgaine

Author Bio:

Susan Morgaine is a Daughter of the Goddess, Writer, Teacher, Healer, Yogini, Witch. She is a monthly columnist with PaganPages.org Her writings can be found at her blogs at ShaktiWarrior.wordpress.com, and MysticalShores.wordpress.com/blog, along with The Girl God Anthologies, “Whatever Works: Feminists of Faith Speak” and “Jesus, Mohammed and the Goddess”, as well as Mago Publications “She Rises, Volume 2, and the upcoming "Seasons of the Goddess". She has also been published in Jareeda and SageWoman magazines. She is a Certified Women’s Empowerment Coach/ Facilitator through Imagine A Woman International founded by Patricia Lynn Reilly. She has long been involved in Goddess Spirituality and Feminism, teaching classes, workshops and groups within MA and RI. She is a member of the Sisterhood of Avalon. She can be reached at MysticalShores@gmail.com