The Transformation of Actaeon

This work shows the scene, popular in the 16th century, of the hunter Actaeon’s transformation, when he accidentally stumbles upon the goddess Diana while she is bathing. The naked goddess, surrounded by nymphs, angrily splashes water from a richly adorned pool on the surprised, then bewildered youth, upon which he grows a stag’s head. The end of the story is shown in the background: his own dogs, not recognizing him, hunt him down and tear him to pieces. The Düsseldorf work, with an intricate scrollwork frame, is cropped. Mignon’s etchings are frequently based on works by the Florentine painter Luca Penni (c. 1500–1556), who worked in Fontainebleau between 1537 and 1540. (Sonja Brink)