AMSTERDAM.- The world-famous sculpture Sleeping Hermaphroditus, from the collection of the Musée du Louvre in Paris, will go on display at the Rijksmuseum from 6 February, as part of the Metamorphoses exhibition. The 17th-century intervention by Italian sculptor Bernini – who added a strikingly realistic mattress and pillow to a Roman marble body – transformed it into an iconic work of both Ancient and Baroque sculpture. Sleeping Hermaphroditus is one of the highlights of the Metamorphoses exhibition at the Rijksmuseum.

Metamorphoses at the Rijksmuseum

The Metamorphoses exhibition explores how, for centuries, artists have been inspired by the eponymous epic poem of the Roman poet Ovid. More than 80 masterpieces by artists including Titian, Correggio, Cellini, Caravaggio, Rubens, Rodin, Bourgeois and Bernini have been brought together for this exhibition, on loan from museums and collections around the world. The Rijksmuseum is presenting the exhibition in collaboration with the Galleria Borghese, Rome. Metamorphoses runs at the Rijksmuseum from 6 February to 25 May 2026.

Hermaphroditus from the Louvre

The Roman sculpture (2nd century CE) was excavated in 1618 and presented to Cardinal Scipione Borghese, who commissioned the Italian sculptor Gian Lorenzo Bernini (1598–1680) to create a suitable base for the reclining figure. With a brilliant yet simple intervention, Bernini made the ancient sculpture his own by adding a contemporary marble mattress and pillow that subtly indent under the weight of Hermaphroditus. The result is stunningly naturalistic, and Bernini went on to apply this technique in other works he created for Scipione in subsequent years. Sleeping Hermaphroditus has been part of the Louvre collection since the sale of the sculpture in the early 19th century.

The story from Metamorphoses

The fusion of the nymph Salmacis and Hermaphroditus is one of the 250 tales told by Ovid in Metamorphoses, his magnum opus. Salmacis, who dwelt in a clear spring, instantly fell in love with the handsome youth Hermaphroditus. Despite his rejection of her persistent advances, she would not give up. She pleaded with the gods to unite them forever, and they granted her wish: as Hermaphroditus bathed in the spring, Salmacis entwined herself around him, and their two bodies merged into one, making Hermaphroditus both man and woman. The story reveals the darker side of lust, desire and power.