The Power of Cupid (Jupiter Disarmed), ca. 1530–50
Master of the Die (active Rome ca. 1525–60), after Baldassare Tommaso Peruzzi (Italian, Sienese, 1481–1536)
Engraving; sheet 7 1/2 x 8 11/16 in. (19 x 22 cm)
The Elisha Whittelsey Collection, The Elisha Whittelsey Fund, 1949 (49.97.328)
Technical Glossary
Master of the Die (active Rome ca. 1525–60), after Baldassare Tommaso Peruzzi (Italian, Sienese, 1481–1536)
Engraving; sheet 7 1/2 x 8 11/16 in. (19 x 22 cm)
The Elisha Whittelsey Collection, The Elisha Whittelsey Fund, 1949 (49.97.328)
As in Ovid's brief account of Ganymede's abduction (Metamorphoses 10.155–61), in this engraving the story is all about love. Cupid is the central character, and Ganymede and the eagle are relegated to accessories, testifying to the power of the infant god—even in his sleep—to disarm the supreme ruler of Olympus. Mercury, messenger of the gods, often assisted Jupiter with his love affairs. Here, he rushes to help his father, while Venus, in the company of the Graces, watches over her son.
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Related Index Terms
Artist
- • Master of the Die (active Rome, ca. 1525–1560)
- • Peruzzi, Baldassare Tommaso (Italian, Sienese, 1481–1536)
Material and Technique
Subject Matter/Theme
- • Figure, Deity
- • Figure, Deity, Greek and Roman
- • Figure, Deity, Greek and Roman, Aphrodite/Venus
- • Figure, Deity, Greek and Roman, Eros/Cupid
- • Figure, Deity, Greek and Roman, Hermes/Mercury
- • Figure, Deity, Greek and Roman, Zeus/Jupiter
- • Literature and Literary Connections
- • Literature and Literary Connections, Greek Poetry
- • Literature and Literary Connections, Greek Poetry, Ovid: Metamorphoses
- • Love
- • Print, Engraving, Mythological
