[4] After first visiting Knidos with Turkish archaeologist Aşkıdil Akarca,[2] she conducted annual excavations there from 1967,[7] with funding from New York University assisted by wealthy family friends and foundations.
[4] In 1969, her mostly female team discovered a foundation that Love believed to be the remains of the Temple of Aphrodite;[1][4][8] this was confirmed by inscriptions found the following year.
[9] After Love presented her results at the annual meeting of the Archaeological Institute of America, it excited international attention and visits to the excavation site by many famous guests, including Mick and Bianca Jagger.
[citation needed] The finds at the temple site in Knidos included fragments of over-lifesized hands that Love believed to be from the statue of Aphrodite by the Athenian artist Praxiteles.
[14] She lived for 15 years with journalist Liz Smith,[15] dividing her time between New York and Italy, where she also had a relationship with designer and artist Bice Brichetto.