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The Bacchanal of the Andrians

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‘The Bacchanal of the Andrians’ © Madrid, Museo Nacional del Prado

The Bacchanal of the Andrians

It is one of the most admired and well-known paintings by Titian and the most enthusiastic and vivid representation of a pagan festival in the Renaissance. It is inspired by the description of a famous ancient painting.

In this painting we can see the celebration of the effects of wine on the Island of Andros, in which the drink flowed from a stream, thanks to the god Bacchus. The nymph in the foreground of this agile and devious composition is one of the most daring naked characters in Renaissance painting, which comes from the classical sculpture "The Ariadna". The sheet music in the centre on the ground is thought to be composed by the Flemish musician Adriaen Willaert. The lyrics talk about men and gods celebrating wine.

This painting was made, together with others ones such as the "The Offering for Venus", for the so-called "Alabaster Chamber" of Alfonso I d'Este in Ferrara. In 1598 they were moved to the Aldobrandini Palace and in 1637 Niccolo Ludovisi gave them to Philip IV.