Psyche Revived by Cupid's Kiss
Antonio Canova's tender marble of Cupid awakening Psyche with a kiss — a jewel of Neoclassical sculpture.
Carved between 1787 and 1793, the group captures the moment from the ancient tale of Cupid and Psyche when the winged god revives the lifeless Psyche with a kiss. Their bodies form a gentle X, arms encircling in a composition designed to be admired from every angle.
Canova, the leading sculptor of his age, drew on Greek mythology and classical ideals of beauty, yet gave the marble a warmth and delicacy that make the stone seem to breathe. The polished surfaces and the interlacing arms are considered a technical tour de force.
Acquired for the French national collection after the Revolution, the sculpture stands in the Denon wing's gallery of Italian sculpture, where visitors circle it to follow the embrace. It is among the most beloved works in the Louvre.
- 🗿TypeMarble · 155 × 168 cm
- 🎨ArtistAntonio Canova
- 📅Date1787–1793
- 🏛️RoomDenon wing · Italian sculpture
- 📍LocationMusée du Louvre, 75001 Paris
About the Louvre
The Louvre is the world’s largest and most-visited art museum. Once the fortress and royal palace of the kings of France, it opened as a public museum in 1793 and today holds some 35,000 works spanning antiquity to the mid-19th century — from Egyptian antiquities and Greek marbles to the French Crown Jewels.
Since 1989, visitors enter beneath the glass Pyramid designed by architect I. M. Pei, which opens onto the museum’s three wings — Denon, Sully and Richelieu — arranged around the Cour Napoléon. The Louvre stands in the 1st arrondissement along the Rue de Rivoli, beside the Tuileries Gardens and the Seine.
The museum is open every day except Tuesday, from 9 am to 6 pm (with a late evening on Fridays). Timed tickets are strongly recommended and can be booked on the official site, louvre.fr; under-18s enter free, as do EU residents under 26. Nearest métro: Palais-Royal–Musée du Louvre (lines 1 and 7).
Where to see it — the Louvre and around
The Louvre (pulsing marker) at the centre. Toggle the filters to explore the heritage, gardens, restaurants and activities of the 1st arrondissement — and the hotels around it.