Infant Bacchus and the Nymphs of Nysa

Artist Luca Giordano (Italian, 1634-1705)

Dateca. 1660

MediumOil on canvas

DimensionsImage: 71 × 117 in. (180.3 × 297.2 cm)
Frame: 79 1/4 × 126 5/16 in. (201.3 × 320.8 cm)

ClassificationsPaintings

Credit LineBequest of John Ringling, 1936

Object numberSN161

This painting by Luca Giordano depicts a scene from the Metamorphoses (ca. 8 AD) by Roman poet Ovid. In the story, the infant Bacchus, born of an illicit union between the Roman god Jupiter and the mortal princess Semele, is entrusted to the care of the five nymphs of Mount Nysa. There, he would be safe from the vengeful goddess Juno, Jupiter’s wife. Bacchus, hoisted on the shoulders of an attendant and escorted by a band of chubby putti, is shown carrying a handful of grapes and a dish of wine, items that underline his identity as the Roman god of the harvest and inebriate pleasure.

On View

On view

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