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Notes
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A pair of doves, an attribute of Venus, are beside winged Cupid, who struggles to untie the laces of Mars‘ footwear. Venus is married to Vulcan. The voluminous red bed drapes are looped around the bedposts to reveal this scene of adultery like a stage set. The earthiness of the deities’ forbidden passion is echoed and expressed in the painting’s sultry colour palette. The haste of the brushwork suggests that this picture was never intended to be displayed where it would be closely inspected.
When Mars and Venus was presented to the National Gallery in 1838 it was considered unsuitable for public exhibition, and so it hung for many years in the Director’s office.
Title
Mars and Venus
Date
about 1590
Medium
Oil on canvas
Measurements
H 132.7 x W 168.4 cm
Accession number
NG1866
Acquisition method
Presented by the Duke of Northumberland, 1838
Work type
Painting
The National Gallery, London
Trafalgar Square, London, Greater London WC2N 5DN England
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