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Tapestry: The Abandonment of Psyche

Jean-Baptiste Oudry, François Boucher1741–1742

The J. Paul Getty Museum

The J. Paul Getty Museum
Los Angeles, United States

With arms outstretched, a despairing Psyche gazes upward at the departing figure of <span class="text-link" onclick="javascript:link(84, 441, event);">Cupid, who arches his back in flight against gray clouds. A trio of naiads, or water <span class="text-link" onclick="javascript:link(84, 500, event);">nymphs, witness the event, their eyes following Cupid's aerial departure. As Cupid leaves Psyche, she finds herself in a remote and stony wilderness, its lack of hospitality tempered only by the source of a spring whose cascading water becomes a stream.  

This tapestry forms part of a series which tells the mythological story of Psyche; the others in this series include The Toilette of Psyche, Psyche at Cupid’s Palace, and Psyche at the Basketmakers.

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  • Title: Tapestry: The Abandonment of Psyche
  • Creator: François Boucher, Nicolas Besnier, Jean-Baptiste Oudry, Beauvais Manufactory
  • Date Created: 1741–1742
  • Location Created: Beauvais, France
  • Physical Dimensions: 377.8 × 282.2 cm (148 3/4 × 111 1/8 in.)
  • Type: Textile
  • External Link: Find out more about this object on the Museum website.
  • Medium: Silk and wool; modern cotton lining
  • Terms of Use: Open Content
  • Number: 63.DD.3
  • Culture: French
  • Credit Line: The J. Paul Getty Museum, Los Angeles
  • Creator Display Name: After design by François Boucher (French, 1703 - 1770) and Woven under the direction of Nicolas Besnier (French, 1714 - 1754) and Jean-Baptiste Oudry (French, 1686 - 1755) Beauvais Manufactory (French, founded 1664)
  • Classification: Decorative Art (Art Genre)
The J. Paul Getty Museum

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