Paris and the three Godesses

The drawing portrays one of the most frequently reproduced scenes in the Iliad, and Thorvaldsen has made use of numerous sources, most importantly, probably, John Flaxman’s interpretations of Homer’s poem. Mercury has just brought the three goddesses to Paris, and the Trojan prince has made his choice. He is offering the golden apple to Venus, while Cupid is clinging to her. Variations on this group, Venus and Cupid, appear later in numerous works by Thorvaldsen, while the grand scene suggested in this drawing was never worked into a relief.