Mirror with women bathing before a statue of Aphrodite on a pillar

Hygiene was a mark of purity and status for women in the ancient world, and bathing was not only a practical activity but often a ritual in itself. This mirror shows two nude women bathing at a basin in a sanctuary of Venus, as a statue of the goddess sits atop a column in the background-a common means of identifying sacred space in Classical art. The early worship of Aphrodite, as Venus was known to the Greeks, centered on personal rituals for women, and preparation for love and marriage, bathing, and beautification were cult activities that endured for centuries. The woman on the left bends down toward a water jar (kalpis), while the woman on the right leans on the basin and pours something-most likely fragrant oil-into the basin from a bottle in her right hand. The figures and objects are elevated on platforms that both create a ground line and formalize the sanctuary setting. The postures of the women imitate two standard poses of Venus/Aphrodite in Classical art. She is often shown from behind, like the figure on the right, and the ancient sources who describe her statues emphasize how appealing she is from all sides. The pose of the woman on the left echoes that of the most famous statue of Aphrodite: the one made by Praxiteles for the city of Knidos, showing the goddess surprised in the act of bathing. The actual statuette atop the pillar incorporates a third pose, with the goddess arranging her hair after her marine birth, known as Aphrodite Anadyomene ("rising from the sea"). Thus, this object, used by an ancient woman in her own rituals of beautification, is not only instructional but also inspirational: every woman can, through the acting of bathing, reveal her inner goddess.