Jan never travelled to Italy, but his son Johan did: he stayed there from 1648 to 1650 and became a member of the Bentvueghels. Upon his return, he settled in Amsterdam, where his father also lived. Together, they produced these two large canvases depicting moments in the life of the beautiful Io. Jupiter turned the nymph into a cow to conceal his adultery. His suspicious wife Juno had the cow guarded. In the first painting, Jupiter is depicted with the eagle, his attribute. He wraps his arm around the cow (Io), while Juno – accompanied by Envy, an evil woman with a sickly face and snakes on her head – points to the animal. The second painting shows Jupiter ordering Mercury to kill Argus, the giant with hundreds of eyes guarding the cow at Juno’s behest. [tekst 2023]