Cupid and Psyche: The 17th Century

Moving on to the 17th century, the Royal Collection has a series of paintings by Luca Giordano illustrating the story of Cupid and Psyche, which were painted in the mid 1690s. London's National Gallery has a picture by Claude Lorrain of Psyche outside Cupid's palace, painted in 1664.

This picture from the late 1620s by Simon Vouet, showing Psyche spying on the sleeping Cupid, is in Lyon's Musée des Beaux-Arts, but does not appear on their website.

The 1634 picture below showing Cupid with Psyche, who has fallen asleep after opening Prosperina's box, is also in the Royal Collection. It was painted by Anthony Van Dyck.



Orazio Gentileschi's picture below of Cupid and Psyche, with them both awake, was painted in the late 1610s. It is now in St. Petersburg's State Hermitage.