BACCHUS LEAPS from his chariot in his first encounter with Ariadne, princess of Crete. She has just been abandoned by her lover Theseus on the island of Naxos (his ship is vanishing on the left skyline), whom she had taught to slay the Minotaur. Heartbroken Ariadne will be captured by the god Bacchus, taken for marriage, and become an immortal goddess. Her bridal crown will be transformed into the circle of stars (seen in the sky above her).

This third bacchanal (for the god Bacchus) is based on a poem by Ovid.

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