Images

A red-figure vase painting of the Trojan prince (and cup-bearer to the god Zeus) Ganymede, playing with a hoop and rooster, or game-cock. The presence of a game-cock may be representative of Ganymede's relationship with Zeus, as men in ancient...

A Hellenistic statuette of a little boy with a pet rooster or game-cock. Roosters were common pets in ancient Greece, often given to children as playmates, or given to lovers as tokens of affection. Terracotta. 2nd Century BCE, Pontus. Height...

A facsimile of a painting from the Tomb of Sennedjem, in Deir el-Medina. The painting depicts a cat killing a serpent and is associated with a sequence in the Egyptian Book of the Dead. The original painting was made c. 1295-1213 BCE. The...

This terracotta figurine of Cybele depicts her seated on a throne with a lion on her lap. She wears a mural crown which symbolises her patronage over the city and its defensive walls. A patera (libation-bowl) and tympanon (hand-drum) are...

Terracotta group of Zeus carrying Ganymede from Troy to Olympus. Corinthian workshop, beginning of 5th century BCE. Olympia Archaeological Museum, Greece.

A 2nd-century CE Roman statue group of two sighthounds playing, discovered in 1774 CE in Monte Cagniolo, Italy. The group was once nicknamed "The Townley Greyhounds", after their owner Charles Townley. However, the dogs depicted are not proper...

A photorealistic representation of Roman emperor Commodus (r. 180-192 CE). Made using Artbreeder, a neural net tool.

Card showing an angel paddling in a small boat called "Hearts Delight", 1890 CE. Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division Washington, D.C.

The Lupercalian festival in Rome: Cupid and Personifications of Fertility encounter the Luperci dressed as dogs and goats, a pen and ink drawing by the Circle of Adam Elsheimer (1578-1610).

Cupid on a Dolphin, painting by Erasmus Quellinus II, 1630 CE. Museo del Prado, Madrid.