Hiram PowersÉtats-Unis, 1805–1873Psyche
Peut-on la contempler ?
Nous l’ignorons : le musée garde le silence
Smithsonian American Art Museum
Washington, États-Unis
Le propriétaire est connu. Si elle est exposée aujourd’hui, le musée ne le dit pas, et l’on ne nous a pas appris à deviner.
- Dans cet état depuis
- 25 sept. 2026
- Source
- Les données de collection du musée lui-même
About the sculpture
According to Greek mythology, Psyche was a beautiful maiden who fell in love with Cupid. Cupid's mother, Aphrodite, was jealous of Psyche's beauty and tried to keep the lovers apart. Eventually, however, Aphrodite realized that Cupid and Psyche were destined to be together and so she made Psyche immortal. Psyche is also the Greek word for "soul" and "butterfly." In his sculpture, Hiram Powers portrays Psyche as a young woman with delicate facial features and a butterfly in her curling hair, a symbol of her transformation into womanhood. The sculpture was commissioned in 1848 by wealthy Boston merchant Ignatius Sargent, who had purchased several sculptures from Powers. Over the next fifteen years, Powers made nine marble and three plaster copies of this ideal figure.
Smithsonian American Art Museum
Notice
- Numéro d’inventaire
- 1968.155.86
What it shows
Sources
- Smithsonian American Art Museum: the museum's own open data · obtenue il y a 4 jours
- Image : Smithsonian American Art Museum — CC0
