Diana ontdekt de zwangerschap van Callisto

The goddess Diana, identified by the crescent moon on her brow, sits at the left while her attendants forcibly strip the nymph Callisto to reveal her pregnant belly. This dramatic moment, set within a lush forest clearing, captures the discovery of Callisto's affair with Jupiter. The scene is filled with hunting dogs, bows, and quivers, attributes typical of the goddess's retinue.

Based on Ovid's Metamorphoses, this scene was a favorite subject for the Haarlem Mannerists, who used mythological narratives to explore moral themes and anatomical complexity. In the broader Western esoteric tradition, the myths of Ovid were frequently subjected to alchemical and Neoplatonic allegorization, where Diana represents the lunar principle or the purity of the soul.