Venus and Cupid as the Honey Thief

Venus and Cupid as the Honey Thief

Title

Venus and Cupid as the Honey Thief

[cda 2020]

Painting on wood

Medium

Painting on wood

[Letter from G. Auguier, Paris, to D. Koepplin, 28.05.2009; Koepplin Archive]

Venus and Cupid are represented as full length nude figures against a backdrop of thick undergrowth. Venus looks out at the viewer, wearing only a transparent veil, which seems to emphasize her nakedness rather than conceal it. Her weight is supported on her right leg and she has turned slightly

Venus and Cupid are represented as full length nude figures against a backdrop of thick undergrowth. Venus looks out at the viewer, wearing only a transparent veil, which seems to emphasize her nakedness rather than conceal it. Her weight is supported on her right leg and she has turned slightly towards Cupid. He is holding a honeycomb in his right hand and seeks her assistance by pointing at the bees to explain that he has been stung. She informs him that his arrows of Love are no less painful and appears to point to the Latin inscription in the upper left corner. The motif alerts us to the consequences of abandoned lust.

[cda 2020]

Attributions
Lucas Cranach the Younger
Lucas Cranach the Elder

Attributions

Lucas Cranach the Younger

[Letter from D. Koepplin to Mr. Auguier, Paris, 24.06.2009; Koepplin Archive]

Lucas Cranach the Elder

[Page from an auction catalogue, Paris, 23.06.1978, no. 48; Koepplin Archive]

Production date
about 1540

Production date

about 1540

[Letter from D. Koepplin to Mr. Auguier, Paris, 24.06.2009; Koepplin Archive]

Dimensions
Dimensions of support: 51 x 35 cm

Dimensions

  • Dimensions of support: 51 x 35 cm

  • [Page from an auction catalogue, Paris, 23.06.1978, no. 48; Koepplin Archive]

Signature / Dating

Artist's insignia on the trunk of the tree: serpent with dropped wings, facing left; in yellow paint

Signature / Dating

  • Artist's insignia on the trunk of the tree: serpent with dropped wings, facing left; in yellow paint

Inscriptions and Labels
  • in the upper left corner: 'DVM PVERALVEOLO FVRATVR MILLA CVPIDO // FVRANTI DIGITVM CVSPITE FIXIT APIS // SIC ETIAM …

Inscriptions and Labels

Inscriptions, Badges:

    • in the upper left corner:

  • 'DVM PVERALVEOLO FVRATVR MILLA CVPIDO // FVRANTI DIGITVM CVSPITE FIXIT APIS // SIC ETIAM NOBIS BREVIS ET PERITVRA VOLVPTAS // QVAM PETIMVS TRISTI MIXTA DOLORE NOCET.'

Owner
Private Collection
Repository
Private Collection
CDA ID
PRIVATE_NONE-P447
FR (1978) Nr.
FR-none
Persistent Link
https://lucascranach.org/en/PRIVATE_NONE-P447/

Provenance

  • Demidoff collection
  • sold 13.01.1863, no. 31
  • Count of Lambertye
  • sold 1868, no. 11
  • M. Payelle, Paris
  • sold 23.06.1978, no. 48
  • 2009, private collection, Paris
    [Letter from G. Auguier, Paris to D. Koepplin, 28.05.2009; Koepplin Archive]
  • sold by Auction Art Rémy Le Fur & Associés, at the Hôtel Drouot, Paris, lot 30, 29.11.2022
    [Auct. Cat. Paris 2022, lot 30]

Exhibitions

Paris 1956, no. 29

Literature

Reference on page Catalogue Number Figure / Plate
Auct. Cat. Paris 2022 42 030
EditorHôtel Drouot, Paris
TitleAuction Art Rémy Le Fur & Associés, Hôtel Drouot, Paris
Place of Publication[Paris]
Year of Publication2022
Show Literature
Koepplin 2003 B 50 Fn. 146
AuthorDieter Koepplin
TitleNeue Werke von Lukas Cranach und ein altes Bild einer polnischen Schlacht - von Hans Krell?
Place of PublicationBasel
Year of Publication2003
Show Literature
Descargue 1959 Fig. p. 59
AuthorPierre Descargues
TitleLucas Cranach le Vieux
Place of PublicationParis
Year of Publication1959
Show Literature
Exhib. Cat. Paris 1956 029
EditorSociété des Amis du Louvre
Title˜Leœ cabinet de l'amateur [Paris, Orangerie des Tuileries, FEb.- April 1956]
Place of PublicationParis
Year of Publication1956
Show Literature

Research History / Discussion

This painting may be compared with a version in Nuremberg [DE_GNMN_Gm213] and one in a private collection [CDA.PRIVATE_NONE-P132], all three are tentively attributed to Lucas Cranach the Younger and in the inscription the spelling of 'CVSPITE' is with a 'T' rather than the 'D' generally found on other versions of the same subject. An earlier version dated '1532' and sold at Colnaghi, London [CDA.PRIVATE_NONE-P448] also exhibits the same spelling of 'CVSPITE'.

[cda 2020]

  • Venus and Cupid as the Honey Thief, about 1540

Images

Compare images
  • overall
  • overall
  • reverse

Condition Reports

Date2009

  • the panel has been trimmed at the left and right edges as well as along the top; the bottom edge is original

  • the painting is in excellent condition, with the exception of a few retouches

  • examined by Dieter Koepplin

Citing from the Cranach Digital Archive

Entry with author
<author's name>, 'Venus and Cupid as the Honey Thief', <title of document, data entry or image>. [<Date of document or image>], in: Cranach Digital Archive, https://lucascranach.org/en/PRIVATE_NONE-P447/ (Accessed {{dateAccessed}})
Entry with no author
'Venus and Cupid as the Honey Thief', <title of document, data entry or image>. [<Date of document, entry or image>], in: Cranach Digital Archive, https://lucascranach.org/en/PRIVATE_NONE-P447/ (Accessed {{dateAccessed}})

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