Bacchante with an Ape

Hendrick ter Brugghen

1627

Oil on canvas, Oil, Canvas

J. Paul Getty Museum

A smiling woman wearing a turban and red drapery holds a bunch of grapes over a golden chalice, while a monkey sits to her left, also holding grapes. A pear and nuts are visible on a surface in the foreground. A bacchante, follower of Bacchus, the god of wine, leans forward and grins at the viewer while squeezing a bunch of grapes into a golden drinking vessel. Her posture, exposed breasts, flushed cheeks, and inviting smile allude to her drunken state. There is something disturbing, however, in the way she provocatively confronts the viewer, leaning into the spectator's space and smiling broadly. In the lower left corner an ape mimics the woman's gesture, holding a smaller bunch of grapes in his right paw. The ape may serve a moralizing purpose, condemning excessive drinking. While visiting Rome from about 1604 to 1614, Hendrick ter Brug