8 APRIL 1820
The Venus de Milo is discovered by a Greek farmer
The marble figure of an idealised woman reappears two millennia after its creation
A peasant farmer clearing stones from scrubby land, a rock removed to reveal a long-hidden wonder, an icon reborn. That's the most commonly told account of the discovery of the Venus de Milo, one of the most revered artworks in history – though, as with her identity, the truth is rather less than certain.
In 1820, Milos-a small island in the Cyclades between Athens and Crete – was part of the Ottoman empire, though subject politically to the French. According to the most widely recounted version of the story, on 8 April, Yorgos Kentrotas uncovered a niche holding a statue carved from Parian marble. Seeking help to recover his find, Yorgos alerted French naval officer Olivier Voutier, whose
