Diana and Actaeon

In this finely detailed engraving, the goddess Diana (Artemis) is shown at her bath, surrounded by her nymphs in a forested landscape, near a stream and cascading waterfall. Several attendants are depicted in the act of bathing or drying themselves, while others react with alarm. To the left, the hunter Actaeon appears with his dogs, unwittingly having intruded upon the sacred scene. Diana gestures in his direction, in the very moment of casting her punishing transformation. Actaeon begins to change, and horns sprout from his head, marking the start of his metamorphosis into a stag. His loyal hounds, unaware, are already turning toward him foreshadowing the tragic end in which they will hunt and tear him apart. In the distance, hilltop towns and rocky mountains frame the mythological action, reinforcing the isolated, sacred setting of the goddess’s bath. .