3224
Poelenburch, Cornelis van circle of
1594/1595 Utrecht - 1667 ibid.
The Abduction of Ganymede.
Oil on canvas, relined. Unsigned.
H 79, W 65 cm (support). Framed.
The Trojan king's son Ganymede, called the most beautiful of all mortals, was so desired by Zeus, the father of the gods, that he then abducted him to Mount Olympus in the form of a majestic eagle. As cupbearer, Ganymede supplied the table of the immortals with nectar and ambrosia, a task he took over from Hebe, the goddess of youth.
The model for this work from the circle of Cornelis van Poelenburch was probably a legendary drawing, now considered lost, but copied by contemporaries such as Giovanni Battista Naldini (1537 - 1591), which Michelangelo Buonarotti (1475 - 1564) had given to his pupil Tommaso de' Cavalieri (1512/1519 - 1587).

Condition report