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- Filippo della Valle (1698 - 1768)
- Cupid and Psyche
- Rome, Italy
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- Date: c. 1730
- Object Type: Statuette
- Medium: Marble
- Height: 84.4 cm
- Width: 80.2 cm
- Depth: 49.7 cm
- Inv: S22
- Location: Landing
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- Description
- Provenance
- Marks/Inscriptions
- Further Reading
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- This sculpture depicts Cupid, god of love, and the beautiful mortal woman Psyche. Although adult lovers in the original tale, in art they are often depicted as children. The group is by Filippo della Valle who enjoyed a successful career in Rome, but was somewhat forgotten after his death.
Della Valle’s elegant style has much in common with that of French eighteenth-century sculptors. The group was for a long time attributed to a French sculptor Claude-Augustin Cayot, mainly on the basis of a false signature ‘Cayot 1706’ inscribed on the base. There is a discrepancy between the carved date and the more advanced, almost Rococo style of the sculpture. Research revealed that the group is a documented work of Della Valle. Cayot’s signature was applied later, probably by a dealer. The latter may have had the 4th Marquess of Hertford in mind as a buyer since Lord Hertford already owned a statue by Cayot.
- This sculpture depicts Cupid, god of love, and the beautiful mortal woman Psyche. Although adult lovers in the original tale, in art they are often depicted as children. The group is by Filippo della Valle who enjoyed a successful career in Rome, but was somewhat forgotten after his death.