Cyclops

In Mantua, in the Hall of Psyche of Palazzo Te, this fresco occupies the central part of the western wall, between the two windows and having the fireplace as its base. Inside is represented the titanic figure of the Cyclops Polyphemus, represented here with a club and a seven-barreled syrinx. Below, on the right, are Aci and the nymph Galatea. A bear appears to the left of the cyclops. The subject of the fresco is linked to Ovid’s Metamorphoses – XIII, 740-897. The gigantic figure of the Cyclops is the absolute protagonist of the scene, and critics agree to attribute it to Giulio Romano’s brush. The fresco is made on twenty-three layers of mortar, that is to say as many days of work.