Bacchus and Ariadne

The painting was inspired by Ovid’s description of the mythical lovers’ meeting on the island of Naxos. The Goddess Venus brings Bacchus, in the company of satyrs and bacchantes, to the lonely Ariadne and takes a crown of pearls from the head of the Cretan princess. Ricci employed the theme more than once - the composition of the Prague painting from the collections of Count Vrtba was inspired by a painting by Giulio Carpioni in a private collection in Treviso.