After Guido Reni, Perseus and Andromeda

In this scene inspired by Ovid’s Metamorphoses (Book IV, 783–960), Andromeda, daughter of the Ethiopian queen Cassiope, is about to be sacrificed to placate a monster summoned by Neptune, god of the sea. The hero Perseus appears at top left on his winged horse Pegasus, preparing to kill the monster and rescue the distressed princess.

Andromeda is depicted naked and surrounded by a swirling cloak, which is positioned to preserve her modesty. Her statuesque anatomy and stylised drapery are typical of Guido Reni, and comparable to his treatment of other female protagonists in his mythological paintings, including Atalanta and Hippomenes (Museo di Capodimonte, Naples).

This work is a copy, with some variations, after Reni’s painting of about 1635 (Pallavicini Collection, Rome). It was probably made in the latter half of the seventeenth century and deviates from the Pallavicini painting most notably in the position of Perseus‘ right arm. In Reni’s original, Perseus’ arm is drawn across his body; here, it is raised to strike the sea monster. It was not unusual for copyists to make alterations to the compositions they were replicating, and they often did so at the request of their clients.