De procris: mujer de Cephalo · Centre for Early Modern Visual Culture

Title: De procris: mujer de Cephalo
Subject: Famous Women; Procris; Cephalus; Greek Mythology; Important Women
Period: 1450-1500;
Geographic: Thessaly; Ancient Greece
Description: Boccaccio explains that when Cephalus was told that his wife (Procris) would abandon him in exchange for money and treasures, Cephalus began testing his wife. Cephalus would disguise himself and offer her gold and treasures in exchange for her love. This scene is depicted on the right side of the engraving. Procris rejected the disguised Cephalus multiple times, however, she eventually accepted his treasures. In this scene she is holding his hand and looking at him lovingly. Procris ended up regretting what she had done to her husband. To punish herself, Procris went to live in the woods. Cephalus had been hunting one day and had mistaken his wife for an animal and shot her. Procris is visible behind the grass in the background of the engraving while Cephalus is depicted with a cross bow in his hands after shooting her. Cephalus’ name is engraved beside his arm to identify him.
Image Creator: Anonymous (Engraver)
Type: Text; Woodcut Engraving
Identifier: mta:14784
Language: spa
Source Name: De Las Mujeres Ilustres [On Famous Women]
Parent Collection: 1494 Mujeres Ilustres
Image: mta_14784_OBJ.png