Mercury and Argus
ca. 1732
Amigoni’s decorative impulse creates a harmonious pastoral reverie from a story of jealousy, revenge, and trickery among the gods. The young man playing the flute is Mercury, sent by Jupiter to lull the giant Argus to sleep before killing him. Jupiter’s jealous wife had ordered Argus to guard the goddess Io, whom she had already changed into a heifer so that Jupiter could not pursue her.
Oil on canvas
30 1/2 x 25 1/2 in. (77.5 x 64.8 cm)
Gift of Mr. and Mrs. Charles M. Clark
51.123
Provenance: [Charles D. Childs Gallery, Boston, until 1951]; purchased from gallery for Seattle Art Museum by Mr. and Mrs. Clark, Seattle, June 4, 1951
Photo: Elizabeth Mann