The subjects for this painting and its pendant (right of the mantelpiece) come from the Metamorphoses, famous stories by the Roman author Ovid. In both scenes, Jupiter, king of the gods, disguised himself in order to seduce a maiden. Here, he is seen as a shepherd courting Mnemosyne. In the other painting, he passes himself off as Diana, goddess of the hunt, in order to charm her nymph Callisto.