Sheet 2 from a series for the worship of Ceres, Venus and Bacchus: Cult of Venus

A monumental, nearly nude Venus stands on the left, holding aloft a flaming heart as Cupid rests at her feet with his bow. On the right, men and women in late 16th-century Dutch attire kneel or gaze upward in devotion to the goddess. In the background, Venus appears again in the sky, riding a chariot pulled by doves through the clouds.

Part of a series illustrating the proverb 'Sine Cerere et Baccho friget Venus,' this work explores the natural-philosophical connection between sustenance and desire. It reflects the Haarlem Mannerist interest in Neoplatonic allegories where Venus represents the generative power of nature and the universal force of love that binds the cosmos.