Frans Floris the Elder: The Judgement of Paris (1550s)

(Hermitage Museum, St Petersburg, Russia)

A painting by the Flemish artist Frans Floris the Elder (1517-1570). This piece shows an episode from Greek mythology. According to the legend all the Greek gods were invited to attend the wedding of Peleus and Thetis, except for Eris, the goddess of discord. When Eris did arrive at the wedding she threw a golden apple into the crowd with the text "To/for the fairest one". Three goddesses claimed the apple: Hera, Athena and Aphrodite. They asked Zeus to judge which of them was fairest, and eventually he declared that the Trojan prince Paris would judge their cases, for he had recently shown his exemplary fairness in a contest. With Hermes as their guide, the three goddesses then confronted Paris on Mount Ida. At first Paris couldn't decide who of the three was the fairest so all three of them undressed to convince Paris of their worthiness. Each of them also attempted o bribe him with promises: Hera offered to make Paris king of Europe and Asia, Athena offered wisdom and skill in war, and Aphrodite promised the hand of the most beautiful woman on Earth (Helen of Sparta, wife of the Greek king Menelaus). Paris accepted Aphrodite's gift and awarded her the apple to her and received Helen as well as the enmity of the Greeks and especially of Hera. The Greeks' expedition to retrieve Helen from Paris in Troy is the mythological basis of the Trojan War. Painting from the 1550s.