In Roman mythology, Callisto is a nymph of Diana, the goddess of chastity. Jupiter, disguised as Diana and with the help of Cupid, seduces and impregnates Callisto.
Domenico Vito, an Italian monk and printmaker, based his Jupiter and Callisto on Pierre Milan’s engraving, after Francesco Primaticcio’s fresco in the Palace of Fontainebleau. Primaticcio was a member of the First School of Fontainebleau, a group of Italian masters brought into France by Francis I to decorate the royal palace. In 1542 Primaticcio set up a school of printmaking, where Milan was a member.