Venus and Love sleeping

Etching, ca. 1620/30, unsigned. From a subject by Odoardo Fialetti.

This is a counterpart copy of the Scherzi d'amore series, made by Odoardo Fialetti in 1617; a series of 14 sheets, the first of which serves as a frontispiece. Bartsch testifies to the existence of two different frontispieces: the first bears the title Scherzi d'amore espressi da Odoardo Fialetti pittore in Venezia; the second bears the same title enriched with a dedication Scherzi d'amore espressi da Odoardo Fialetti al Magnanimo et ill. mo sig.r Sig.r il Sig.r Baron Roos with the editorial indications: In Venezia con lic. de sup. MDCXVII and with the image of two putti holding the coat of arms of Baron Roos.

The series was a considerable success, as evidenced by the number of copies of the engravings that were made close together; this version, from the type of paper, is assigned to the 17th-century Bolognese school.

The depiction of love in the classical tradition normally requires the presence of Venus, often in the company of her son Cupid. While Venus is nobly chaste and also embodies the supreme virtue of Peace, Cupid is decidedly more villainous. After all, he is the god of desire, attraction, and affection and has endured longer in love imagery than Venus.