This bronze statuette was inteded as a firdog figure and represents Venus as a nude female figure holding a staff.
The great majority of bronzes produced during the Italian Renaissance were made for use, so-called 'functional bronzes', which, however beautiful in their own right, nevertheless had some practical use beyond simple ornament. The furnishing of the study was indeed one of the most important tasks of bronze casting.

Firedogs or andirons were placed within the fireplace and would have been used to hold utensials which were required for tending the fire. Often, firedogs do not even appear on inventories, which indicates their status as standard household objects, not necessarily worthy of particular note.