Liriope Bringing Narcissus before Tiresias

The subject of this painting is taken from Ovid’s Metamorphoses (Book III: verses 339-510). The river nymph Liriope gave birth to a beautiful child whom she named Narcissus, and here she is shown taking her son to the blind seer Tiresias to enquire about his destiny. Tiresias pronounced that he would live a long life as long as he did not “come to know himself” but Narcissus famously wasted away after he fell in love with his own reflection. The tale concludes with Narcissus’ death and the transformation of his body into a flower, which to this day still bears his name.