The classical mythology of the Prado represented by works by such outstanding artists as Francisco de Zurbarán, José de Ribera, Pedro Pablo Rubens, Francesco Albani, among others.

2. The Gods of the Prado

4. rather unusually, the god of war is on his own,
contemplating his own pitifulness ...
and there lies Mars's magnificent armour – he was so
admired for the brilliance of his martial appurtenances
profoundly sad, heaped up there so untidily at the
bed's foot, about to be consigned to the lumber room
of history
Mars
1638
VELÁZQUEZ, Diego Rodríguez de Silva y

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8. Bacchus places on an young man`s head
the crown of the ivy traditionally associated
with poets
... an allegory of wine, which is not only
able to cheer humans and induce non-
rational states, but also to stimulate poetic
creation
The Feast of Bacchus
Le Triomphe de Bacchus
1628 - 1629
VELÁZQUEZ, Diego Rodríguez de Silva y

12. love cut short by death,
in this case that of Adonis …
Venus and Adonis
Vénus et Adonis
1580
VERONESE, Paolo (Paolo Cagliari)

15. the Phoenician princess Europa after
she was abducted by Zeus, who had
taken on the form of a white bull
the fearful princess, barely holding on
to one of the bull´s horns, was taken
to Crete, where she bore Minos
The Rape of Europe
L'Enlèvement d'Europe
1628 - 1629
RUBENS, Peter Paul (Copy after Titian, Tiziano
Vecellio)

19. a fountain
a garland of flowers
and
the three Graces, born of one
of Zeus’s affairs and pure virgin
The Three Graces
Les Trois Grâces
1630 - 1635
RUBENS, Peter Paul

23. Echo falls in love with Narcissus,
but
Narcissus isn't into it ...
meanwhile, Narcissus stops for a drink
at a small pond and sees his reflection
in the water of the pool
and
he falls hopelessly in love - with himself
Narcissus
Narcisse
1636 - 1638
COSSIERS, Jan

26. Apollo is totally in love with Daphne …
he chases her around the woods,
trying to convince her of how
completely awesome he is
but …
Apollo's ladylove becomes a laurel tree
Apollo and Daphne
Apollon et Daphné
1636 - 1638
THULDEN, Theodoor van

29. Bacchus surrounded by silenos
and satyrs in a cortege …
The Triumph of Bacchus
Le Triomphe de Bacchus
1636 - 1638
VOS, Cornelis de

33. Police Report:
Wanted for murdering the sacred Python of
Delphi …
Case Status: Closed
Subject was only four days old, and Python
was a disastrous and dangerous force in the
area; everyone was pretty happy that Apollo
killed it …
(everyone except for Gaia)
Apollo and the Python
Apollon et Python
1636 - 1638
VOS, Cornelis de

37. Leda
Zeus disguised as a swan
one or two eggs
(and … Leda's husband, Tyndare)
... awaiting paternity tests on Leda's children:
Helen of Troy, Clytemnestra, and Castor and
Pollux
Leda and the Swan
Leda et le cygne
First half of the XVI century
PENCZ, Georg

41. Saturn feasting upon one of his sons …
his child's head and part of the left arm have
already been consumed
Saturn
Saturne
1820 - 1823
GOYA Y LUCIENTES, Francisco de

45. Kronos was the Titan king of the gods who gained his
throne from his father Ouranos after he chopped off his
dad's man-parts with a sickle …
Kronos might have been a good ruler, but he was a pretty
terrible dad :
when Ouranos prophesied that Kronos would lose his
throne to one of his kids, Kronos decided to start eating
the baby gods as soon as they were born ...
Saturn devouring a Son
Saturne dévorant un de ses fils
1636 - 1638
RUBENS, Peter Paul

48. the moment when the god Apollo tells Vulcan
that his wife, Venus, is having an affair with
Mars, the god of war ...
Vulcan's Forge
La Forge de Vulcain
1630
VELÁZQUEZ, Diego Rodríguez de Silva y

52. Zeus was attracted to the nymph and
took the form of Diana to seduce and
rape her …
the most dramatic moment of the story:
as Diana and her nymphs prepare to
take a bath …
Callisto reveals her pregnancy
Diana and Callisto
Diane et Callisto
1635
RUBENS, Peter Paul

56. Cupid hits Hades with a love arrow ...
one day, Persephone is picking flowers when,
all of a sudden, Hades bursts out of the ground,
driving a chariot of black horses
he grabs Persephone and despite the resistance
put up by Minerva, Venus and Diana,
starts dragging her down to the underworld ...
The Rape of Proserpine
Rapt de Proserpine
1636 - 1637
RUBENS, Peter Paul (and Workshop)

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61. Orpheus descends to the underworld
to retrieve his wife, Eurydice …
Pluto and Proserpine, the god and goddess of the
underworld, moved by the music of his lyre, accede
to his request
the only condition they impose is that he does not
look at his beloved until both have completely
abandoned the underworld
Orpheus and Eurydice
Orphée et Eurydice
1636 - 1638
RUBENS, Peter Paul (and Workshop)

65. Hercules was born from one of Jupiter´s affairs with
a mortal ...
though loved and protected by his father, he was
repudiated by the wife, Juno
in order to insure his son´s immortality, Jupiter
placed him in the goddess´s arms so that he could
suckle while she was sleeping next to her chariot
pulled by peacocks
in his enthusiasm, Hercules bites her, Juno awakens
the milk spilling out of her breast turned into the
Milky Way
The Birth of the Milky Way
La Naissance de la Voie lactée
1636 - 1638
RUBENS, Peter Paul

69. the story of the mortal Arachne who
dared to challenge the goddess Athena …
The Spinners, or the Fable of Arachne
La Légende d'Arachné, Les Fileuses
1655 - 1660
VELÁZQUEZ, Diego Rodríguez de Silva y

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73. surprise, surprise : Jupiter in love with
the beautiful nymph, Callisto …
the trouble is that Callisto is a follower
of Diana and has sworn to stay a virgin
all her life
to get around this little hiccup in his
plan of seduction, Jupiter disguises
himself in the form of Diana and
seduces Callisto
Diana and Callisto
Diane et Callisto
1745 - 1749
PIERRE, Jean-Baptiste-Marie

77. when Ixion's son, Pirithous, got married to
Hippodamia, he invited his half-brothers,
the centaurs ...
Eurytion, the centaur chief and his buddies
got super drunk, though, and tried to take
off with the bride
and
the Centaur War began …
The Rape of Hippodamia
L'Enlèvement d'Hippodamie
1636 - 1637
RUBENS, Peter Paul (and Workshop)

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82. the moment when the eagle catches the young shepherd
and lifts him into the air …
the lightening bolt visible among the clouds,
which symbolizes the god, alludes to the force
and fury with which the kidnapping takes place
The Rape of Ganymede
Rapt de Ganymède
1636 - 1638
RUBENS, Peter Paul

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86. Ixion, king of the Lapiths and
later father of the Centaurs ...
betrayed Zeus's hospitality
by trying to seduce his
host's wife Hera
as punishment, Zeus
sentenced Ixion to be tied to
a perpetually turning wheel
of fire in Tartaros
Ixion
1632
RIBERA, Jusepe de, Lo Spagnoletto

89. Sisyphus, founder and king of Corinth …
obliged to push a rock for ever uphill for having
recounted Zeus’ affair with Aegina
Sisyphus
Sisyphe
1548 - 1549
TITIAN (Tiziano Vecellio)

92. Hercules kills this creature as his first labor ...
the beast is said to be gigantic and it has a hide so
thick that no spears or swords can penetrate it
this is no big deal for Hercules, who just squeezes
the thing to death
Hercules fighting the Nemean Lion
Hercule affrontant le lion de Némée
1634
ZURBARÁN, Francisco de

96. Icarus is most famous for not being able to follow
simple instructions ...
his father, Daedalus, the brilliant inventor, told him
very specifically not to fly too close to the sun
before he knew it …
the wax was melting,
feathers were flying everywhere
and
Icarus was falling into the sea
The Fall of Icarus
La chute d'Icare
1636 - 1638
GOWY, Jacob Peeter

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101. one of the most infamous perps of teenage
shenanigans to ever fly under the sun ...
Phaeton demands that his dad Helios let him take the
sun-chariot out for a spin
with the reins in his hands, things pretty much
immediately go haywire and the fiery horses dash
about the sky, incinerating half the earth
Zeus, zaps Phaeton with a thunderbolt ...
The Fall of Phaethon
La chute de Phaéton
1636 – 1638
EYCK, Jan Carel van

103. created olga_oes

105. olga_oes
The Gods of the Prado
Les dieux du Prado
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Music ThePianoGuys Someone you loved (piano cello)
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106. Myths are stories that tell us of gods and demigods and their relationship with men. This is why they are
found in all ancient cultures and societies.
Their origin is uncertain in most cases, and traditionally they were handed down by word of mouth,
gradually changing with new additions and different versions. In the case of the Greek myths, the fi rst
written records date back no further than the 8th century BC.
The lead characters of these myths were mainly the gods of Olympus, who not only ruled over the fate of
men but descended to Earth and interacted with them, sometimes taking on a human likeness that
brought them closer.
Their stories also served to explain all sorts of phenomena in nature and the universe around them.
Throughout history, classical mythology has been a constant source of inspiration for artists of all sorts,
and these fabulous tales were depicted on pottery, blocks of marble, medals, tablets and canvases.
The classical mythology of the Prado is represented by works by such outstanding artists as Francisco
de Zurbarán, José de Ribera, Pedro Pablo Rubens, Francesco Albani, among others.