In a departure from his usual subject matter, Lucas Cranach the Elder here deals with ancient Greek mythology in The Nymph of the Fountain from 1534. Nymphs were minor female deities, usually associated with woodland or water. Here a young nude woman reclines in front of a fountain in the forest.
Her eyes droop tiredly and at her feet are two birds. Cranach’s treatment of the subtle and delicate shroud that covers the young woman’s modesty is a glorious feat of skill. The picture is typified by serenity and the fruitfulness of nature.
Lucas Cranach the Elder’s The Nymph of the Fountain is in the Walker Art Gallery in Liverpool, United Kingdom.