Venus of Willendorf: at the beginning of the story of sculpture

Venus of Willendorf, Front View
Originally uploaded by profzucker

Venus figurines is an umbrella term for a number of prehistoric statuettes of women portrayed with similar physical attributes from the Upper Palaeolithic, mostly found in Europe, says Wikipedia.

Their distribution ranges across Eurasia, from the Pyrenees to Lake Baikal. The dates of these man-made pieces ranges from 35,000 years ago to about 11,000 years.

These figurines were carved from soft stone such as steatite, calcite or limestone. Or were fashioned from bone or ivory, or formed of clay and fired. The latter are among the oldest ceramics known.

In total, over a hundred such figurines are known; virtually all of modest size, between 4 cm and 25 cm in height. They are some of the earliest works of prehistoric art.