The Alliance of Bacchus and Cupid
- MAKER:
Artist
Antoine Coypel ( French, 1661 - 1722 )
- DATE:
- c. 1702
General Description
This late 17th-century mythological scene by Antoine Coypel symbolizes the union of Cupid, the god of love, and Bacchus, the god wine. Both deities are youthful figures, with Bacchus as a handsome young man, and Cupid a boy just verging on adolescence. Venus looks on from her cloud overhead while Cupid and Bacchus drink a toast to their alliance. Others join in the celebration: three Graces dance at left, and creatures from Bacchus's company, including fauns, cavort at right. Coypel painted this work for a private patron and exhibited it at the Salon of 1704.
Adapted from
-
DMA label copy, n.d.
-
DMA label copy, 1993.
Web Resources
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The British Museum, London
Check out this 1717 portrait of Antoine Coypel. -
Museo del Prado, Madrid
Read a biography of Antoine Coypel. -
The Morgan Library & Museum, New York
View a drawing of an angel by Coypel. -
National Galleries Scotland, Edinburgh
See a portrait of Coypel and his son, Charles Antoine Coypel by Gaspard Duchange. -
Chateau de Versailles
Explore the Royal Chapel of Versailles. Antoine Coypel painted the center panel of the ceiling, God the Father in his Glory.