Jupiter and Mnemosyne
1733
Medium
Pen and brown and black ink and brush and brown and gray wash, with watercolor, heightened with white gouache, over traces of graphite on ivory laid paper
Dimensions
44.9 × 31 cm (17 11/16 × 12 1/4 in.)
Classification
prints and drawing
Department
Prints and Drawings
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Accession Number
185913
Rights
Public Domain
About this artwork
This colorful drawing features the amorous pair of Jupiter and Mnemosyne, goddess of memory. According to the Roman version of the Greek myth, the two gods’ courtship gave rise to the birth of the nine muses. De Wit sets the title figures in a pastoral scene replete with an infant shepherd, distant mountains, and loyal hounds.
About the Artist
Jacob de Wit · 1695–1754
Comment on works: Religious; Allegory; Bas-relief