Comparison of Venus of Willendorf and the Lady of Auxerre Term Paper

Comparison of Venus of Willendorf and the Lady of Auxerre - Term Paper Example Artwork traces its origin back from the ancient days. The use of symbols by man has been in existence since time immemorial. Signs and symbols were used as a form of communication as they represented different objects, ideas, and even events. For example, the dove was used as a symbol of peace while the anchor represented hope. Symbols have also been used for confidentiality purposes; there are cases where some communities used symbols to preserve their secrets so that only members of the particular community would understand the message being conveyed and have any outsiders excluded from understanding. It has been argued that these symbols are not just mere fantasies and imaginations by man but contain some fragments of truth in them. The use of symbols has also received appreciation among Christians. This is evident from the writings of a Catholic scholar one Father Martin C. Darcy. From one of his books â€Å"The meaning and matter of history,† he appreciates the existence of poetic insight and myth and insists that they should not be written off. He goes ahead to note that myths and symbols created a link between the old age dry facts and the present day civilization. This, therefore, indicates that the signs and symbols that have always existed from time immemorial are of great significance to mankind and need to be studied in the depth to get to understand what they actually stand for. These sign and symbols convey important messages and lessons from the ancient times and should therefore not be ignored.   The Venus of Willendorf is artwork in the form of sculpture. This artwork is a statuette of an obese female figure approximately 11 cm high that is about 4.3 inches. Conspicuously, the feet supporting the obese figure are quite small and the ankles are not easily visible. The artwork behind the sculpture portrays vast knowledge in the field of anatomy.