The Suckling of Hercules, plate two from La Galerie du Palais Royal, volume II 1808

Editor: So, here we have "The Suckling of Hercules", a print from 1808, part of a series titled "La Galerie du Palais Royal." I’m immediately struck by the dramatic swirling composition and the contrast between the ethereal figures and the dark, almost oppressive clouds below. It’s... intense. What story do you see unfolding here? Curator: Intense is spot on. It's a slice of myth caught mid-air, isn’t it? The tension is palpable. Look at the sheer dynamism, figures hurled across the composition! Juno, rejecting the infant Hercules – immortality rejected at first touch! Do you feel the echoes of Neoclassicism attempting to tame such raw power? The sharp lines and balanced forms seem to contain, just barely, a volcanic energy. How does that push-and-pull strike you? Editor: That idea of “containing” something volcanic is so interesting, and so visible in the print work itself. Is there also a commentary on power here? Curator: Oh, power is the heart of it. Not just physical strength, though Hercules's future is literally being nourished. This is about divine power, the negotiation, or maybe even struggle, between mortals and gods, fate versus choice, chaos versus order – all those delightful binaries the 18th century just adored chewing on. What does the allegorical symbolism do for you? Do those peacock feathers, and floating putti bring a feeling of royal splendor, or something else? Editor: You know, seeing all of those figures around Hercules definitely frames him, the hero of the piece. Curator: And there's the delightful paradox! Hercules needs nourishment and god-like help, making this an exploration of divinity and raw, human neediness. Thank you. It is indeed the struggle of these raw needs to be nurtured into divinity that I will be pondering as I walk on through the museum.