LATE 17TH EARLY 18TH CENTURY

This scene is taken from Lucius Apuleius's (circa 124 - after 170) Metamorphoses or The Golden Ass and depicts Psyche leaning above Cupid with her oil lamp. Psyche was so beautiful that she even aroused the envy of Venus. Venus sent her son Cupid to make Psyche fall in love with the most despicable of men, but Cupid himself fell in love with her. He had her brought to his palace but only visited her after dark, warning her never to look at him. One night, curious, she lit a lamp to take a look at him but inadvertently let a drop of oil fall on him and he awakened. His palace vanished and he disappeared. Psyche wandered the earth in search of him, performing near impossible tasks set by Venus. Ceres and Juno intervened in vain with Venus and finally Jupiter took pity of Psyche and carried her up to heaven where she married Cupid.

A tapestry of similar date and nearly identical design was sold anonymously at Christie's New York, 29 January 1997, lot 137.