Cupid and Psyche

In Italian it is "Amore E Psiche", or Cupid and his mortal lover, the princess Psyche. She is so beautiful that the goddess Venus becomes jealous and instructs her son Cupid to make Psyche fall in love with a hideous monster. Instead Cupid falls in love with her himself. He forbids her to look at him, lest she discover his true identity. Psyche cannot resist, and one night looks upon his face. Cupid awakens and flees, planning never to see her again. Psyche undertakes a series of cruel and difficult challenges from Venus in the hope of winning Cupid back. He can eventually no longer bear to witness her suffering or to be apart from her and pleads to the gods. Psyche becomes an immortal and the lovers are married.

Cast from Carrara marble in Borgo san Giacomo, Italy.