Midas Washing at the Source of the Pactolus ca. 1627 Nicolas Poussin French According to ancient myth, King Midas was granted his greedy wish that everything he touched would be turned to gold, but he quickly realized that he could neither eat nor drink. In order to reverse what had become a curse, the god Bacchus instructed Midas to wash in the Pactolus River. Poussin represents Midas here as the smaller, humbled figure behind a classical representation of a reclining river god and two putti whose jugs point simultaneously to the river’s source and to Bacchus, the god of wine. This painting,
Midas Washing at the Source of the Pactolus ca. 1627 Nicolas Poussin French According to ancient myth, King Midas was granted his greedy wish that everything he touched would be turned to gold, but he quickly realized that he could neither eat nor drink. In order to reverse what had become a curse, the god Bacchus instructed Midas to wash in the Pactolus River. Poussin represents Midas here as the smaller, humbled figure behind a classical representation of a reclining river god and two putti whose jugs point simultaneously to the river’s source and to Bacchus, the god of wine. This painting, abounding with Poussin’s classical erudition, was among the first he completed after arriving in Rome and was among the first paintings to enter The Met in Midas Washing at the Source of the Pactolus 437328
Size: 2858px × 3807px
Photo credit: © MET/BOT / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No
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