Antonio Canova | Hebe, 1796

Hebe is one of the most famous works of Antonio Canova (1757-1822), an outstanding Neoclassical sculptor of the late 18th - early 19th century.

According to ancient myth, Hebe was the daughter of Zeus and Hera and was the embodiment of youth.

As serving-maid to the gods on Mount Olympus, she was responsible for bringing round cups of nectar, the drink of eternal youth and immortality, during feasts.

Canova depicted the goddess flitting swiftly and easily across the clouds, hardly touching them with the toes of her bare feet.

Antonio Canova (1757-1822) | Hebe, 1800-1805 | Hermitage Museum, St. Petersburg

Rembrandt | The Return of the Prodigal Son, 1668

In the Gospel According to Luke (15: 11-32), Christ relates the parable of the Prodigal Son.

A son asks his father for his inheritance and leaves the parental home, only to fritter away all his wealth.

Arriving at last at sickness and poverty, he returns to his father's house. The old man is blinded by tears as he forgives his son, just as God forgives all those who repent.

This whole work is dominated by the idea of the victory of love, goodness and charity.

The event is treated as the highest act of human wisdom and spiritual nobility, and it takes place in absolute silence and stillness.

Rembrandt | Danaë, 1636

Danaë is Rembrandt's painting from the collection of Pierre Crozat which since the 18th century has resided in the Hermitage Museum, St. Petersburg, Russia.

It is a life-sized depiction of the character Danaë from Greek mythology, the mother of Perseus.

She is presumably depicted as welcoming Zeus, who impregnated her in the form of a shower of gold.

Given that this is one of Rembrandt's most magnificent paintings, it is not out of the question that he cherished it, but it also may have been difficult to sell because of its eight-by-ten-foot size.

Giorgione | Judith, 1504 | Hermitage Museum

Author: Giorgione

Painting, Oil on canvas, 144x68 cm

Origin: Italy, 1504

Personage: Judith

Style: Renaissance

Source of entry: Collection of baron L.A. Crozat de Tierra, Paris, 1772

School: Venetian

Location: Hermitage, Saint Petersburg

Theme: The Bible and Christianity