This painting is the tenth in a set of twelve in the Royal Collection depicting part of the story of Cupid and Psyche. The subject of this series comes from The Metamorphoses or Golden Ass by the second-century AD writer Apuleius: it is one of the stories that intersperse the main narrative of Lucius on his travels (Book IV, para. 28 - Book VI, para. 24). The tale of the many travails endured by ill-matched lovers (one mortal and one divine) before their final happy marriage, it was interpreted in the Renaissance as a Neoplatonic allegory of the progress of the soul (Psyche means 'soul' in Greek) towards salvation through Divine Love. The outcome of their union is Pleasure.

At this stage in the story Psyche has begun her search for Cupid, who lies wounded in his mother's chamber. A tern finds Venus bathing in the sea and tells her of the suffering of Cupid, now in love with Psyche. Apuleius makes no mention of the great maritime retinue depicted by Giordano, with Venus seated on two dolphins, surrounded by tritons and nereids, as the white bird tells her the news. In Apuleius this scene occurs earlier on (Book IV, para 31), after Venus has instructed Cupid to humiliate Psyche and returns to the sea, where the nereids sing in harmony and a triton sounds on his loud horn. Although the text below the print simply describes the tern as an 'augella', meaning 'bird', the tritons with trident and conch shell and the nereids are the same as in Giordano's painting.

Inscribed in pencil on back of copper: J Meijers

Catalogue entry adapted from The Art of Italy in the Royal Collection: Renaissance and Baroque, London, 2007