THE THEBAN SAGA 377
Agenor's daughter [Europa] wondered at the bull's beauty, amazed that he did
not threaten to attack, yet, gentle as he seemed, she at first was afraid to touch
him. After a while she came up close and offered flowers to his white face. The
young princess even dared to sit upon the bull's back. Then the god little by lit-
tle began to take his deceptive steps further from the dry land into the sea, then
he went further and carried his prey across the central waters of the sea. At
length he laid aside the disguise of the deceiving bull and revealed who he was
and reached the shores of Crete.
In Crete Europa became the mother of Minos by Zeus.The Rape ofEuropa, by Titian (ca. 1488-1576). Oil on canvas, 1559-1562; 73 X 81 in. Titian
relies upon Ovid's narratives {Fasti 5. 605-614 and Metamorphoses 2. 843-875). As in the
Selinus metope, dolphins swim near the bull (one in the right foreground and one sup-
porting a cupid), and Europa grasps the bull's horn. Her windblown drapery and des-
perate gestures, and the cupids flying through the air, impart an air of agitated move-
ment in keeping with the mixed emotions, fear and anticipation, of the principal figures.
In the distant background Europa's companions vainly call her back to the shore. (Isabella
Stewart Gardner Museum, Boston. Reproduced by permission.)