Bacchus, the god of wine, is here seated facing to the right, with his head turned towards the viewer. He wears vine leaves in his hair, in reference to the grape harvest, and has an animal skin draped around his left shoulder. In his right hand he holds up a shallow dish. Part of his staff, entwined with vine leaves or ivy, is visible above his shoulder.

The painting is one of a series of twelve mythological scenes of gods and mortals by Pellegrini, all of autograph quality. The history of their commission is not known and the series may be incomplete, but the poses of the figures suggest that the canvases were part of a decorative scheme. There is no evidence that this was a royal commission; the paintings may have entered the collection because of the destruction of a house for which they were originally intended. One of the series, Endymion (RCIN 405481), appears on the wall in Philippe Mercier's The Music Party of 1733 (RCIN 402414), which shows Frederick, Prince of Wales, performing with his sisters (in a room that has never been securely identified). This makes Frederick the most likely purchaser of the set, though the only evidence directly linking them to him.