CITTADINI, Pier Francesco
(b. 1616, Milano, d. 1681, Bologna)

Ulysses Foiling the Wiles of Circe

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Oil on board, 149 x 226 cm
Private collection

The painting depicts an episode from the Odyssey (Bk 10). On their journey home after the Trojan War, Ulysses and his companions came upon the island of the sorceress, Circe. With a magic potion, she transformed the men into swine; however Ulysses, having been forewarned by Mercury and having taken an antidote, was able to resist her magic.