The Festival of Psyche, with Mercury from a set of Mythological Subjects after Giulio Romano

Giulio Romano

An item at Metropolitan Museum of Art

In a gently wooded landscape, mythological figures gather. Together with the contiguous scene in the tapestry the Festival of Psyche with Bacchus (53.225.9), the composition broadens to include a glorious credenza display of gilded plate with precious textiles, in a scene traditionally identified as depicting preparations for the wedding feast of Cupid and Psyche. This tapestry is from a set of eight, traditionally called Les Sujets de la Fable. The designs for all eight tapestries are based in part upon drawings then in Louis XIV's collection- now preserved in the Louvre- which were all, at that time, attributed to Giulio Romano. Four of the tapestries in this series- all of which are part of The Met’s collection- ultimately take as their inspiration frescos by Giulio Romano and his assistants in the Palazzo Te, Mantua. The design source of this tapestry is Giulio’s fresco depicting preparations for Cupid and Psyche’s wedding, painted in the Palazzo’s sala di Psiche.

European Sculpture and Decorative Arts

An exhibit at Metropolitan Museum of Art

The fifty thousand objects in the Museum's comprehensive and historically important collection of European sculpture and decorative arts reflect the development of a number of art forms in Western European countries from the early fifteenth through the early twentieth century. The holdings include sculpture in many sizes and media, woodwork and furniture, ceramics and glass, metalwork and jewelry, horological and mathematical instruments, and tapestries and textiles. Ceramics made in Asia for export to European markets and sculpture and decorative arts produced in Latin America during this period are also included among these works.

Metropolitan Museum of Art