Mid 17th C.
the scene depicting a well known Roman and Greek Myth: Hera, wife of Zeus has turned his lover, the nymph Io, into a cow and has cast her out of the heavens to earth and the garden of Nemea and ordered Argus, the all seeing Giant, to watch over her. Zeus sends Hermes (Mercury) to earth to free her. Dressed as a peasant and aided by a sleep spell cast upon the giant by Zeus he slays the giant Argus and frees Io, allowing her to live peacefully as a cow for the rest of time. made of silk and wool in good condition
