Bacchus and AriadneGerard de Lairesse (Flemish; 1640–1711)ca. 1680Oil on canvas Rijksmuseum, Amsterd
Bacchus and AriadneGerard de Lairesse (Flemish; 1640–1711)ca. 1680Oil on canvas Rijksmuseum, AmsterdamThese private walls the Minotaur include, Who twice was glutted with Athenian blood: But the third tribute more successful prov’d, Slew the foul monster, and the plague remov’d. When Theseus, aided by the virgin’s art, Had trac’d the guiding thread thro’ ev’ry part, He took the gentle maid, that set him free, And, bound for Dias, cut the briny sea. There, quickly cloy’d, ungrateful, and unkind, Left his fair consort in the isle behind, Whom Bacchus saw, and straining in his arms Her rifled bloom, and violated charms, Resolves, for this, the dear engaging dame Shou’d shine for ever in the rolls of Fame; And bids her crown among the stars be plac’d, With an eternal constellation grac’d. The golden circlet mounts; and, as it flies, Its diamonds twinkle in the distant skies; There, in their pristin form, the gemmy rays Between Alcides, and the dragon blaze.(Ovid, Metamorphoses, Book VIII; trans. Sir Samuel Garth, John Dryden, et al.) -- source link
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