The Venus of Ottitz or Venus of Ocice ( pl, Wenus Ocicka) is a

neolithic The Neolithic period, or New Stone Age, is an Old World archaeological period and the final division of the Stone Age. It saw the Neolithic Revolution, a wide-ranging set of developments that appear to have arisen independently in several p ...

clay Clay is a type of fine-grained natural soil material containing clay minerals (hydrous aluminium phyllosilicates, e.g. kaolin, Al2 Si2 O5( OH)4). Clays develop plasticity when wet, due to a molecular film of water surrounding the clay par ...

statuette of a female figure found in 1909 within the current city limits of

Racibórz Racibórz (german: Ratibor, cz, Ratiboř, szl, Racibōrz) is a city in Silesian Voivodeship in southern Poland. It is the administrative seat of Racibórz County. With Opole, Racibórz is one of the historic capitals of Upper Silesia, being ...

(Racibórz-Ocice),

Silesia Silesia (, also , ) is a historical region of Central Europe that lies mostly within Poland, with small parts in the Czech Republic and Germany. Its area is approximately , and the population is estimated at around 8,000,000. Silesia is split ...

(nowadays

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populou ...

, then

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

). The ceramic original has been lost after

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

, but several copies exist. A gypsum copy is exhibited in the Museum of Racibórz. It was discovered in 1909 and described as figurine of Ottitz near Ratibor (i.e., German nameplaces were used). At that time, it was speculated to be "the most ancient model of human form in existence". In 2013, a press articleRyszard Parka, "Śląska Wenus: Sensacyjne odkrycie archeologiczne pod Raciborzem", ("Silesian Venus: sensational archaeological find near Raciborz"), Dziennik Zachodni, 2013-August-5, http://www.dziennikzachodni.pl/artykul/961000,slaska-wenus-sensacyjne-odkrycie-archeologiczne-pod-raciborzem,id,t.html, accessed 2016 July 22. reported a similar figurine found recently near Raciborz. It is undamaged and is also referred to as "Venus of Ocice". The figurine depicts a feminine body which is slim and has small breast and buttocks, but is wide in hips and thighs. The hands and head are apparently omitted (or only symbolically marked) by the artist. It has been placed in 4th millennium BC.

References

e History of Silesia Racibórz County Ceramic sculptures {{Poland-stub

See also

References