Selene and Endymion

The Romans identified Selene the moon goddess with the huntress Diana, whose attributes are the crescent moon and the bow. The myth tells how Selene falls in love with Endymion, a handsome young shepherd prince who is granted immortality and youth in the form of eternal slumber. Selene visits him nightly as he lies asleep in the Latmian glade. Fuseli’s figure appears to toss and turn, perhaps made aware of his lover’s presence by his faithful sheepdog, whose back supports Endymion’s legs.

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