Representation of Venus found in the excavations carried out in 1853. The position of the goddess, standing, suggests that it is a representation of the myth of Leda and the Swan. Venus - central figure of the Roman pantheon - is the goddess of love, fertility, beauty, protector of lovers and sailors. It defended both public and private interests, of men and women, of young and old. It usually appears accompanied by its attributes: the apple, the pomegranate, the sandalwood, the dolphin and the dove. Venus and her Greek correspondent, Aphrodite, are usually depicted naked or semi-naked.