S Cassandra
This slightly smaller female
nude art sculpture is know as Cassandra, "she
who entangles men", and also went by the
name Alexandra. She was the daughter of the rulers
of Troy during the Trojan war, according to Homer's
Iliad. Cassandra was a beautiful young female,
blessed with the gift of prophecy given to her
by Apollo (who was also infatuated with her).
Unfortunately, she shunned Apollo at the last
minute and he added a twist to her gift; Cassandra
was doomed to tell the truth, but never to be
believed. Cassandra has always been misunderstood
and misinterpreted as a madwoman involved in crazy
doomsday prophecies. But there is so much more
to Cassandra than her maddened predictions and
pitiable treatment. Cassandra was a great, intelligent
heroine who was cursed by the gods for not playing
by their rules. Modern scholars view her as a
tragic figure, not a madwoman. The art of her
sculpture shows a female brushing her hair while
standing nude.
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