Allegory of Carnal Love

This enigmatic group of figures is most likely
an allegory (a representation of an abstract
idea) centered on human love. The winged
Cupid lashes a man’s arm to a tree, while a
long sash binds together two couples who
hungrily touch one another. A figure of
ambiguous sex at left holds the end of the
sash. The print may be related to Neoplatonic
love treatises in Florence. One such treatise
argued that the sense of touch operates
between sensual and spiritual realms, an idea

embodied by Hermaphroditus, an intersex
figure described in Greek myth. A direct
connection remains elusive.