Bacchus und Ariadne

Bacchus and Ariadne

Returning from a triumphal visit to India, Bacchus, god of wine and his entourage of revellers happen upon the Cretan Princess Ariadne, abandoned on the island of Naxos by her lover Theseus - commanding the ship on the horizon. Titian paints the moment when, at first sight, they fall in love, with Ariadne pirouetting like a dancer and Bacchus jumping unselfconsciously from his cheetah-drawn chariot. Bacchus offers himself as her husband, and the sky and the stars as a wedding gift. Titian drew upon several classical sources, most significantly Ovid, Catullus and Philostratus. The painting is one of a series commissioned by the Duke of Ferrara, Alfonso I d'Este, for a private study, the camerino d'alabastro, at his Ducal Palace.