The love goddess Venus has sent her son Amor to punish her rival Psyche, but Amor falls in love with the beautiful princess. Psyche is prevented from seeing him, however, and suspects that he is a monster. In the light of an oil lamp she discovers that her sleeping lover is a beautiful youth, but she accidentally splashes oil on him, waking him up. This is the moment captured in the sculpture. The story is one of the Roman author Apuleius’ tales.