River God reclining on an urn

Terracotta slip on a later stand
in white and grey Sainte-Anne marble

In Greek mythology they were the sons of the river god Oceanus, the most ancient of Titans who
fought Jupiter for the supremacy of the world. Because they irrigated the land, rivers were worshipped
in local Greek cults as fertily gods. As rivers were sacred, particularly in dry lands, so were fountains
and springs, represented by nymphfs, the female counterparts of river gods.

First half of the 18th century

29,5 cm high, 43,2 cm wide, 20 cm deep
11 5⁄8 inch high, 17 inch wide, 7 7⁄8 inch deep

Provenance: Private Collection, Paris