Image: Museo delle Porcellane, Florence
The Uffizi Galleries have highlighted a sixteenth-century work by Parmigianino depicting a moment from the story of Circe and Ulysses. The image was shared in an Italian-language social-media post dated 19 August 2026, which identifies the work as belonging to the Gabinetto Disegni e Stampe, the institution’s drawings and prints collection.
The scene captures Circe offering a potion to a young companion of Ulysses. According to the Uffizi’s description, the drink will transform him into a pig, placing the image at the point immediately before the tale takes on a darker turn. The post describes Circe as an irresistible sorceress and presents Ulysses as the figure capable of bringing the episode to an end.
The story comes from the classical account of Circe, the enchantress encountered by Ulysses during his return journey. In the episode, Circe transforms members of his crew into animals. The Uffizi’s brief interpretation focuses on the suspended instant before that transformation, rather than on its aftermath.
Parmigianino, whose name is given in the post, was an Italian artist of the sixteenth century. The Uffizi identifies the work through the Gabinetto Disegni e Stampe, but the supplied notice does not provide an individual title, date, catalogue number, dimensions or medium.
The post is an interpretive feature about an artwork in the Uffizi’s drawings and prints collection. No exhibition, loan, acquisition or related event is announced in the available source material, and no event dates are provided.
