Young Girl Defending Herself Against Eros

The scene shows a nude young woman seated on a stone ledge, extending her arms to defend herself from a winged cherub (Eros) who stands beside her and holds an arrow. She is draped with a blue cloth that pools at her hip, while the cherub and his wings hover near her against a background of autumnal leaves and a distant landscape. The painting is rendered in Bouguereau’s polished Academic style, with smooth, idealized flesh, meticulous light modeling, and a calm, allegorical mood created by the balanced composition and warm, earth-toned palette.