Eros Scolded by Aphrodite

This definitive drawing for an etching on the same theme, produced by Madrazo in Rome, shows the gods resting – amidst a dizzying play of chiaroscuro – in a broad, detailed landscape. It is remarkable both for the delicate treatment of the female body and for the inclusion of the three Graces dancing with shepherds, a scene recalling Raphael’s painting at Chantilly, in a tribute to the vagaries of love as narrated by Lucian of Samosata.