Villa farnesina, loggia di psiche 25

A nude Venus is depicted receiving a small jar from the kneeling Psyche, who has returned from the underworld. The scene is enclosed in a heavy, decorative garland of fruits and vegetables, while white doves fly in the background. In the upper register, various Olympian gods are visible, including Mercury identifiable by his winged hat and caduceus.

This work illustrates the tale of Cupid and Psyche from Apuleius' 'The Golden Ass', which was a foundational text for Renaissance Neoplatonists. To thinkers like Marsilio Ficino, the trials of Psyche represented the human soul's arduous journey through the material world to achieve divine union and immortality.