Mercury was the god who was light of foot and played the role of rapidly moving messenger to the other gods. He is recognised by his winged hat. His winged sandals are at his feet. There, too, lie a severed head and a sword. Mercury was Jupiter’s son and messenger. One of his feats was that he liberated Io by cutting of the head of Argus, the giant set to guard her. When Thorvaldsen modelled Mercury About to Kill Argus (inv. no. A5), he worked on the basis of the events immediately before Mercury beheaded Argus. Mercury plays his flute in order to lull Argus into a deep sleep. In Giovanni Jacopo Caraglio’s print after Rosso Riorentino, Mercury has succeeded in his mission, and the beheading has taken place. The Roman god Mercury corresponds to the Greek Hermes.
