The sole painting signed by Zucchi and associated with the marriage between Ferdinando I de’ Medici and Christine of Lorraine depicts the moment in Apuleius’ Fable of Psyche when the young woman embarks on a quest to uncover the identity of the mysterious lover who visits her without revealing himself. A drop of boiling oil, spilt from Psyche’s lamp, wakes Cupid, prompting him to flee. This detail is essential to the painting’s attribution and provenance. In 1650, the Roman scholar Iacomo Manilli described the Borghese collection, noting that: “The painting of Psyche holding the oil lamp in her hand as she seeks to identify Cupid is by Jacomo Zucca”.
The story is narrated in the frescoes in this room: in desperation, the young Psyche arrives at the temple of Venus, pleading to be reunited with Cupid. The goddess subjects her to a series of challenging tasks: sorting various grains into separate piles; gathering golden wool from a flock of sheep; fetching water from a spring on a cliff-edge; and descending to the Underworld to ask Proserpina for her beauty. After completing the first three trials, Psyche, daunted by the final challenge, considers jumping from a tower; however, the tower comes to life and advises her on how to fulfil Venus’s demands. On the return journey, Psyche opens the vase containing the goddess of the Underworld’s gift and falls into a deep sleep until Cupid revives her with an arrow. Cupid then entreats Zeus to persuade Venus to accept their union, culminating in a royal banquet to celebrate Psyche’s elevation among the gods.