Venus and Mars Served by Cupid and the Three Graces

c. 1547

Léon Davent, after Luca Penni

Associated Names
Léon Davent

Artist, French, active 1540 - 1556

Luca Penni

Artist After, Italian, 1500/1504 - 1556

This is a drawing of a mythological banquet scene. The image features several figures in classical robes at a lavish feast. There are cherubic figures offering platters and holding shields. The central figure sits at a table with large platters and pitchers. The background includes fabric draping and classical columns. The scene is detailed with shading for depth.

Media Options

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Artwork overview

  • Medium

    etching on laid paper

  • Credit Line

    Ruth and Jacob Kainen Memorial Acquisition Fund

  • Dimensions

    plate: 28.7 × 43.4 cm (11 5/16 × 17 1/16 in.)
    sheet: 29 × 43.6 cm (11 7/16 × 17 3/16 in.)

  • Accession Number

    2016.160.1

  • Catalogue Raisonné

    Zerner 1969, no. 74

Artwork history & notes

Provenance

(Paul Prouté, S. A., Paris); purchased 2016 by NGA.

Associated Names

Exhibition History

2018

  • Sense of Humor: Caricature, Satire, and the Comical in Prints and Drawings from Leonardo to the Present, National Gallery of Art, Washington, 2018 - 2019.

Bibliography

1802

  • Bartsch, Adam. Le peintre graveur. 21 vols. Vienna, 1802-1821: Adam. Le peintre graveur. 21 vols. Vienna: J.V. Degen, 1802-1821: no. 52

1969

  • Zerner, Henri. Ecole de Fontainebleau, gravures.Paris: Arts et Metiers Graphiques, 1969. English ed. The School of Fontainebleau, etchings and engravings. London: Thames and Hudson, 1969: no. 74.

Inscriptions

lower right in plate: LD; by later hand, lower right verso in pen and ink: H(?) 243

Watermarks

small coat of arms of Nuremberg, similar to Briquet 919 and to Meder 210, 1543/1560

Wikidata ID

Q77258783

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