Psyche presenting to Venus the Vase of Proserpine

A red chalk drawing depicting two female figures in a dynamic exchange. On the right, Psyche approaches with a small vessel, while Venus stands on the left with her arms raised in a gesture of reception. The work consists of rapid, overlapping contours, serving as a preparatory study for the frescoes in the Loggia di Psiche of the Villa Farnesina.

The myth of Psyche was a fundamental allegory in Renaissance Neoplatonism, representing the soul's descent, trials, and ultimate return to the divine. This specific scene depicts the completion of the soul's final underworld task, symbolizing the attainment of divine beauty through the navigation of the material and chthonic realms.