Raffaello - Der Triumphzug des Bacchus in Indien, 444

This energetic sketch shows a crowded classical procession centered around the god Bacchus and his followers. In the center, the aged, drunken Silenus is seated atop a large elephant, while Maenads and Satyrs lead panthers and carry ritual vessels. The fluid linework emphasizes the rhythmic, chaotic motion associated with Dionysian revelry.

In the Renaissance, the Bacchic triumph was interpreted through a Neoplatonic lens as an allegory for 'furor divinus' (divine frenzy). This concept, championed by figures like Marsilio Ficino, viewed the ecstatic rites of Bacchus as a metaphor for the soul's liberation from the material body and its return to divine unity.