De godin en god Venus en Cupido. NL-HlmNHA 1477 53010772

Venus reclines atop a mass of stylized clouds, her body twisting in a complex pose typical of the Mannerist style. Below her, a winged Cupid looks up while holding his bow and an arrow, while two doves—symbols of Venus—fly in the upper left. The entire composition is enclosed within an octagonal frame, with a Latin inscription at the base describing the goddess's cosmic role.

This work reflects the Renaissance Neoplatonic understanding of Venus as the 'Golden' mother of beauty who acts as a mediator between the human and the divine. The accompanying Latin verse explicitly identifies her role in binding the earthly and celestial realms through a 'mild covenant' of love, a central theme in the philosophical circle of the Haarlem Mannerists.