Sleeping Cupid with two snakes

The exquisite beauty of this piece, its unusual size, the contrast between the sweet, sleeping figure of Cupid and the robust snakes that brush against him have led some scholars to come to a conclusion about to whom this work might be attributed, with some highly-vaunted artists in the frame. Some, for example, suggest that it may be the work of Antonio Lombardo. More specifically, Gianna Pinotti, following the trail of the Cupids that were in the possession of Isabella d'Este and have since been lost, has developed a complex theory linking this piece to Michalengelo Buonarroti, who has been identified as the creator of one of the two missing sculptures. While there is no definite proof, the subject is still very much up for debate.