Boy meets girl but has to swim a mile in treacherous waters to keep meeting her. When she tells him how she burns with passion, he pushes his luck in the sea.
myth
Ulysses sojourn with Circe, from the Odyssey, as an inset to Virgil’s Aeneid, as retold by Ovid in his Metamorphoses. A first-hand account of transformation.
She saves Theseus’ life by her ingenuity, which wins her marriage to him. But at the first opportunity he abandons her and sails away.
The story of Ulysses’ encounter with the Cyclops Polyphemus is told by a survivor from the Odyssey. Superb paintings by Turner, Böcklin, Reni, and others.
Girl meets boy on a mission; boy cannot deviate from mission; boy leaves girl; girl heartbroken. But was this relationship doomed from the start by others?
Two interlinked stories about the Sibyl, who will live for a thousand years but age until she is just a voice. Painted by Turner (three magnificent works shown), and Claude.
The tragic story of Jason’s first wife, whom he abandoned in favour of Medea, the sorceress. In the end, Hypsipyle got her revenge on him.
The story of Dido and Aeneas summarised in seven lines, and a strange account of the origin of the apes. Paintings by Guérin, Cézanne, Tiepolo, and Fuseli.
Glaucus’ attempt to get Circe to put a spell on Scylla, to make her love him, backfires. Wonderful paintings by Waterhouse, van der Neer, Henry Fuseli, and others.
An illustrated timeline and overview of how the human visual environment, and perception of it, has changed from ancient times to virtual reality.
The Eclectic Light Company 