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Source Description
The beautiful Callisto was a follower of the goddess Diana. According to Ovid’s <em>Metamorphosis</em>, she was seduced by Jupiter, who fooled her by appearing in the guise of Diana. Here, the eagle at Diana’s back is the only indicator that Jupiter is present. Such scenes of the loves and misdeeds of the gods were popular in Amsterdam at the beginning of the 1700s, and Jacob De Wit’s primary employment was making large paintings destined for the dining and sitting rooms of stately homes. De Wit also made finished drawings, as here, which were prized for their fresh colors, easy movements, and playfulness.
Scholar Source Context
Document identity
localId
540586
label
Jupiter (in the guise of Diana) and Callisto
core
obj
dtoType
drawing
pageCount
1
Source metadata
id
540586
contentType
drawing
title
Jupiter (in the guise of Diana) and Callisto
description
The beautiful Callisto was a follower of the goddess Diana. According to Ovid’s <em>Metamorphosis</em>, she was seduced by Jupiter, who fooled her by appearing in the guise of Diana. Here, the eagle at Diana’s back is the only indicator that Jupiter is present. Such scenes of the loves and misdeeds of the gods were popular in Amsterdam at the beginning of the 1700s, and Jacob De Wit’s primary employment was making large paintings destined for the dining and sitting rooms of stately homes. De Wit also made finished drawings, as here, which were prized for their fresh colors, easy movements, and playfulness.
date
1733
citation
rights
CC0
rightsUri
CC0
language
en
wikidata
Q120401469
creators
13479
genreSpecific
Drawing
imageCount
1
source
import
dimensionsRaw
Sheet: 48.6 x 34.9 cm (19 1/8 x 13 3/4 in.); Matted: 54.8 x 40.3 cm (21 9/16 x 15 7/8 in.); Platemark: 44.8 x 30.8 cm (17 5/8 x 12 1/8 in.)
cul
Netherlands
accession
2023.45
Source extras
tec
black chalk, pen and ink, brown and gray wash, watercolor, gouache, white heightening and brown ink framing lines
tombstone
Jupiter (in the guise of Diana) and Callisto, 1733. Jacob de Wit (Dutch, 1695–1754). Black chalk, pen and ink, brown and gray wash, watercolor, gouache, white heightening and brown ink framing lines; sheet: 48.6 x 34.9 cm (19 1/8 x 13 3/4 in.); matted: 54.8 x 40.3 cm (21 9/16 x 15 7/8 in.); platemark: 44.8 x 30.8 cm (17 5/8 x 12 1/8 in.). The Cleveland Museum of Art, Norman O. Stone and Ella A. Stone Memorial Fund, 2023.45
collection
DR - Dutch
didYouKnow
The elegant hunting dogs in this composition appear in the background in a faint vignette that features Diana hunting a deer with a bow and arrow.
citations
citation
Staring, Adolph. Jacob de Wit, 1695-1754. [Aangeboden aan de leden van het Koninklijk Oudheidkundig Genootschap ter gelegenheid van zijn 100-jarig bestaan]. Amsterdam: P.N. van Kampen, 1958.
page_number
p. 193, no. 95; illustrated.
citation
te Rijdt, Robert-Jan A. “Jacob de Wit,” <em>Delineavit et Sculpsit</em> (March 1997).
page_number
no. 17, p. 62, note 2.
citation
Dumas, Charles. <em>Lines of Friendship: Art Historical Essays Commemorating Robert-Jan Te Rijdt (1955-2024).</em> Leiden: Primavera Pers, 2025.
page_number
Reproduced: p. 183
creditline
Norman O. Stone and Ella A. Stone Memorial Fund
updatedAt
2026-05-29 09:10:49.151000
sourceId
540586
dept
Drawings
coll
DR - Dutch
med
black chalk, pen and ink, brown and gray wash, watercolor, gouache, white heightening and brown ink framing lines
creatorTags
male
thumbnail_url
image_url
Single page context
seq
1
pageIndex
0
type
photo
mediaId
0c5d982fc73cc253