The Rape of ProserpinaBernini

In this masterful marble (1621–22), Bernini captures Pluto’s violent abduction of Proserpina—an allegory for the changing seasons from Roman myth. Her twisting body and anguished face contrast Pluto’s force, while Cerberus, the underworld’s three-headed hound, reinforces the drama. At just 23, Bernini infused the stone with breathless motion and tactile realism, anchoring the Borghese legacy in Baroque brilliance.