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Eros, the ancient Greek god of love, is depicted in this exquisite sculpture at New York’s Metropolitan Museum (The Met) resting in serene slumber.
The work was likely a votive offering, dedicated within a sanctuary to honor the deities of Ancient Greece.
As noted in a video produced produced by The Met, the artist has captured the tender moment when the god of love, portrayed as a child, has just drifted into sleep. Here, the artist conveys the purity and innocence of love—a striking contrast to earlier depictions of Eros as cruel and capricious.
Eros sculpture captures love’s purity and innocence
One of the few bronze statues to have survived from antiquity, this figure of a plump baby in a relaxed pose conveys a sense of the immediacy and naturalistic detail that the medium of bronze made possible.
This statue is the finest example of its kind. Judging from a large number of extant replicas, the type was popular in Hellenistic and, especially, Roman times. In the Roman period, Sleeping Eros statues decorated villa gardens and fountains.
Their function in the Hellenistic period is less clear, according to The Met. They may have been used as dedications within a sanctuary of Aphrodite or may have possibly been erected in a public park or private, even royal, garden.
The hauntingly beautiful myth of Psyche and Eros, a moving love story coming from rich Greek mythology, has inspired countless artists all over the world throughout the centuries.
From Renaissance painters, all the way to today’s filmmakers, Psyche and Eros (or “Cupid”) have served as great sources of inspiration and have been featured in many great—and sometimes, lesser—works of art in a plethora of variations.
Related: Eros and Psyche: The Greatest Love Story in Greek Mythology
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