I Modi: Position 20

This monochromatic print depicts a couple engaged in sexual intercourse on a draped couch. The woman lies on her back with her head resting on a pillow, her arms wrapped around the man, while the man kneels between her legs, facing her and kissing her. To the right, a winged Cupid stands behind the couple, wearing the man's breastplate—adorned with a small Medusa head—and holding a long arrow, with a large circular shield visible behind him. The left side of the couch terminates in a carved head of a lion, and behind the figures sits an ornate helmet or trophy featuring a lion and other animal figures.

This work is part of a 19th-century recreation of the 'I Modi' (The Positions), a series of erotic sonnets and engravings originally produced by Marcantonio Raimondi and Pietro Aretino in 1524. The original series caused a significant scandal in Renaissance Rome, leading to the imprisonment of the engraver and the destruction of the plates, marking a pivotal moment in the history of censorship and the depiction of sexuality in art.