Mercury hands over Bacchus over to the nymphs of Nysa.

Drawing, pen and black ink, 47,5 x 64,5 cm, laid paper with watermark (similar to Heawood: 1830), signed at lower left corner "[...]ois Boitard Invent et fecit" (several sm. tears at the edges, tear at lower left corner with partial loss of signature, considerable tear of ca. 3 cm at right edge, large vert. central folding line, some creases, old glue and tape marks, sm. hole at upper right).

At the center of this drawing is the infant god Bacchus. Born of Jupiter’s illicit union with the princess Semele, Bacchus was transported by Mercury to Nysa for safekeeping from Juno’s jealous rage, as recounted in Ovid’s Metamorphoses. François Boitard (1670-1715) was a French Baroque artist. He was a pupil of Raymond Lafage who later followed his style of making drawings and prints. He was known for his rapid and vibrant drawing style. According to one story told by Houbraken, he was able to attract a crowd in a tavern by drawing a complicated version of the Pharaoh entering the Red Sea in two hours, from what appeared to be random scratches on a piece of paper.