Full title | Jupiter seducing Callisto |
---|---|
Artist | Andrea Schiavone |
Artist dates | active about 1530; died 1564 |
Series | Two Mythological Scenes |
Date made | about 1550 |
Medium and support | Oil on canvas |
Dimensions | 18.7 x 18.9 cm |
Acquisition credit | Bought, 1860 |
Inventory number | NG1884 |
Location | Not on display |
Collection | Main Collection |
While resting in a leafy grove, the nymph Callisto believed she heard the goddess Diana greet her. But it was Jupiter disguised as Diana. Here Callisto seems to realise her mistake. As Jupiter caresses Callisto’s cheek, she places her right hand protectively on her thigh. Her knees bend in a curtsy or a faint and she appears shocked.
The brushstrokes in the fluttering draperies, which look almost like they’re drawn in chalk or pastels, lend a soft decorative beauty to this otherwise disturbing scene. This little painting originally decorated the end of a wooden chest. In the central panel Callisto’s fellow nymphs reveal her pregnancy to Diana (Musée de Picardie, Amiens). Arcas Hunting, for the other end of the chest, tells the final part of the story.
This is one of three mythological scenes illustrating the story of Callisto as told in Ovid’s Metamorphoses. Ovid’s poetry was a popular source among artists of stories from Greek and Roman antiquity.
While resting in a leafy grove, the nymph Callisto believed she heard the goddess Diana greeting her. But it was Jupiter in disguise. Here Callisto seems to realise her mistake. As Jupiter caresses Callisto’s cheek, she places her right hand protectively on her thigh and her knees bend in a curtsy or a faint.
The delicate brushstrokes in the fluttering draperies look almost like they've been drawn in chalk or pastels, and lend a decorative beauty to this otherwise disturbing scene. Colour, movement and pattern here are reminiscent of a butterfly taking flight. Very fine threads of gold are painted on Jupiter’s cloak and in the clouds. Scraps of gold leaf were laid over the soft underpaint of parts of the foliage and then glazed with oil paint, making the gold resemble sunlight glimmering among the leaves. There is a fingerprint in the red lake paint of Jupiter’s cloak, which may be where Schiavone wiped away the excess paint with his fingers.
This little painting, about 18 cm square, was made to decorate the end of a wooden chest, known in Italian as a cassone. It is painted on canvas and would probably have been glued to a thin wooden panel. Cassoni were important pieces of furniture used for storing clothes and household linens and would be given to a bride by her parents during her wedding, then taken with her to her marital home. These chests are frequently painted with the coats of arms of the two families joined by the marriage, or decorated with religious scenes or cautionary legends about love. They were often placed at the foot of the couple’s bed.
In the long painting for the front of the cassone (Musée Picardie, Amiens), Callisto’s fellow nymphs reveal her pregnancy to a furious Diana, goddess of chastity. Arcas Hunting, painted for the other end of the chest, tells the final part of the story. We see Callisto’s son by Jupiter, Arcas, hunting with his bow. When Diana discovered that Callisto was pregnant, she turned her into a bear. Schiavone has painted a bear hiding beneath the trees, although it is not easy to make out as the copper green pigment of the leaves has darkened. Not realising that the bear is his mother, Arcas shoots her dead.
Perhaps the choice of subject was to warn the new bride who owned this cassone of the terrible consequences of being seduced and to remind her always to be faithful to her husband.
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Two Mythological Scenes
These are two of three paintings made to decorate the front and sides of a wooden chest, known in Italian as a cassone. They depict the story of the nymph Callisto, as told in Ovid’s Metamorphoses. Such chests were important pieces of furniture used for storing clothes and household linen. A bride would be given one by her parents as a wedding gift and she would take it with her to her marital home.
Jupiter seducing Callisto is the first episode depicted. While Callisto was resting in a leafy glade, Jupiter appeared disguised as Diana, goddess of chastity. He seduced Callisto and made her pregnant. In the long painting for the front of the cassone (Musée de Picardie, Amiens) Callisto’s fellow nymphs reveal her pregnancy to Diana. When Diana discovered that Callisto was pregnant, she turned her into a bear. In the third episode of the story the bear is shot dead by Callisto’s son Arcas, who does not realise that it is his mother.
These are two of three paintings made to decorate the front and sides of a wooden chest, known in Italian as a cassone. They depict the story of the nymph Callisto, as told in Ovid’s Metamorphoses.
The two small paintings, each about 18 cm square, decorated the ends of the chest. They are painted on canvas and would probably have been glued to a thin wooden panel. Cassoni were important pieces of furniture used for storing clothes and household linen. A bride’s parents would give her one as a wedding gift and she would take it with her to her marital home. These chests were frequently painted with the coats of arms of the two families joined by the marriage, or decorated with religious scenes or cautionary legends about love. They were often placed at the foot of the couple’s bed.
Jupiter seducing Callisto is the first episode of the story. The nymph Callisto was a favourite of Diana, the goddess of hunting and of chastity. While Callisto was resting in a leafy glade, Jupiter appeared disguised as Diana. He seduced Callisto and made her pregnant. In the long painting for the front of the chest (Musée de Picardie, Amiens) Callisto’s fellow nymphs reveal her pregnancy to a furious Diana. When Diana discovered that Callisto was pregnant, she turned her into a bear. In the third episode of the story, Arcas Hunting, Arcas goes out into the woods and shoots the bear dead, not realising that it is his mother.
Schiavone was especially known for his lively handling of paint. Here he has used gold for light in the clouds and on the foliage as well as on the drapery. The quality of Schiavone’s paintings must have been greatly admired – these pictures had already been detached from their cassone by 1779 and were displayed in a Venetian art collection.


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