Pygmalion Is Enamoured With A Statue He Had Made; And Venus At His Prayer Transforms It Into A Woman

48.5 x 32 cm (19.1 x 12.6 inches).
Pygmalion Is Enamoured With A Statue He Had Made; And Venus At His Prayer Transforms It Into A Woman
This spectacular baroque engraving is from Bernard Picart's Le Temple Des Muses.
The engraving was made in 1733, is from the first edition and is an original antique. It has captions in French, English, German, and Dutch.
It is in very good condition for its age.
In Greek mythology Pygmalion was king of Cyprus and a sculptor. He made a an ivory sculpture of a woman that he found so perfect he fell in love with it. Pygmalion made offerings at the altar of Venus, wishing for a bride "the living likeness of my ivory girl". When he returned home, he kissed his statue, and found that its lips warm and that the ivory had lost its hardness. Aphrodite had granted Pygmalion's wish.

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