Seen at Altes Museum: Cupid and Psyche

A statue in Altes Museum: Cupid and Psyche. This one is a Roman Copy made around 150 AD, after a Greek original made in the 1rst century BC. A photo made in the Roman Collection of the Old Museum in Berlin.

Psyche, a mortal woman of extraordinary beauty, arouses the jealousy of Venus, the goddess of love. Venus sends her son Cupid to make Psyche fall in love with a monster as a punishment for her beauty. However, Cupid himself falls in love with Psyche but forbids Psyche to look at him. Cupid’s demand for Psyche not to see him is a way to ensure that her love is true and not based on his physical or divine appearance. Psyche disobeys and lights a lamp to see Cupid’s face as he sleeps. Cupid flees, feeling betrayed. Psyche, heartbroken, undertakes a journey to win back Cupid’s love. She has to complete a series of impossible tasks set by Venus. Her perseverance and dedication eventually lead to her being granted immortality by Jupiter, the king of the gods, and she is finally reunited with Cupid. Their marriage symbolizes the union of the love and sould (Cupid and Psyche).

Cupid and Psyche originally appeared in the ancient Greek storytelling. Later, the story was written in the 2nd century AD by Lucius Apuleius Madaurensis

Seen at Altes Museum:  Cupid and Psyche

Seen at Berliner Dom. A woman mourning

Reviewing photos made last year in Berlin I finally got to the Berliner Dom. It will take me sometime to select photos for a coverage on this magnificent building. Right now my pick of the day: a woman mourning beneath one of the ceremonial sarcophagi you can admire in the Dome.

Seen at Berliner Dom. A woman mourning

A postcard from Berlin. The head of singing Dionysus

When you go to Berlin, it is Sunday (shops are not open), it is your first time in years in this city, your hotel is at a central location and the weather forecast says it will be raining, your first thought is to visit the famous Pergamon Museum. So, my first steps today were to the Museum Isle. In fact, you have everything there – a couple of museums, the Dome and the Berlin Palace. As I bought my ticket to the Pergamon, I was informed that I have to wait more than two hours to be allowed there. With plenty time to spare, I made myself to make some photos of the Dome and the palace. But I did not mange to reach them. Just round the corner, I noticed the entry to the Old Museum. It is not that popular with the tourist as the Pergamon, but the collection of ancient artifacts brought to Berlin by the German archaeologists is very impressive.

On the photo above, ‘the head of singing Dionyses’, one of the numerous sculptures you may admire in the Greek collection. The Head of the Singing Dionysus is a marble sculpture that dates back to the 1st century BCE. It is believed to be a Roman copy of a Greek original and is thought to have been part of a larger statue depicting the god Dionysus, the ancient Greek god of wine, fertility, and theater.

A postcard from Berlin. The head of singing Dionysus