Nymphs and a Satyr (Amor Vincit Omnia) (c. 1625–27): Art, History and Details

Nymphs and a Satyr (Amor Vincit Omnia) (c. 1625–27) is in the Cleveland Museum of Art collection. The museum's creator attribution is Nicolas Poussin (French, 1594–1665).

The work and its context

The museum's open-access catalogue describes the work:

Like his colleague Claude Lorrain, Poussin depicted historical and mythological subjects in landscapes inspired by the countryside around Rome. His themes were often complex, and frequently incorporated witty allusions to classical texts. Here, a playful cupid tugs Pan, the goatlegged Greek god of the woods, toward Venus, the goddess of love. The painting cleverly illustrates the Latin phrase amor vincit omnia, or “love conquers all” (in Greek, pan means “all”). The woodland setting represents the idyllic paradise of Pan’s home.

Object facts

• Title: Nymphs and a Satyr (Amor Vincit Omnia)
• Date: c. 1625–27
• Creator attribution: Nicolas Poussin (French, 1594–1665)
• Culture: France
• Type: Painting
• Technique: oil on canvas
• Dimensions: Framed: 121 x 152 x 7 cm (47 5/8 x 59 13/16 x 2 3/4 in.); Unframed: 97 x 127.5 cm (38 3/16 x 50 3/16 in.)
• Collection: P - French 17th Century
• Department: European Painting and Sculpture
• Accession number: 1926.26

A detail from the museum

After arriving in Rome and experiencing financial instability, Nicolas Poussin turned to painting more popular, lucrative mythological scenes, such as those depicting nymphs and satyrs.

Collection credit

Gift of J. H. Wade

Further reading listed by the museum

• "The Last Gift of J. H. Wade: Landscape with Nymphs and Satyrs by Nicolas Poussin." The Bulletin of the Cleveland Museum of Art 13, no.4 (April 1926): 86-89
• The Cleveland Museum of Art. Handbook of the Cleveland Museum of Art. Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1928.
• Milliken, William. "Silver Jubilee Exhibition." The Bulletin of the Cleveland Museum of Art 28, no.6 (June 1941): 88-108

View the collection record

See the museum's photographs and full catalogue entry. Catalogue text is reproduced from the Cleveland Museum of Art's open-access data, with HTML formatting removed. This object and its supplied image are designated CC0.