Franco-Flemish lid cleaned / 02_Lid_flap_outside |
Venus and Cupid with their attributes. Venus herself represents the embodiment of love and sexuality. The Cupid is the God of desire, often portrayed as here as the son of Venus. The bow and quiver full of arrows represent Venus and cupid's power in the victory of love. Her scallop shell chariot rolls on on golden wheel and she rests on a soft pillow with a tassel. Two loving doves, also representing pure love, coo sweetly below her.
This painting has been attributed to François Boucher, Paris, 1750.