Pygmalion (mythology) Jean-Léon Gérôme ("Pygmalion and Galatea"), Honoré Daumier, Edward Burne-Jones (four major works from 1868–1870, then again in larger versions from 1875–1878 with the title "Pygmalion and the Image"), Auguste Rodin, Ernest Normand, Paul Delvaux, Francisco Goya, Franz von Stuck, François Boucher, and Thomas Rowlandson, among others. There have also been numerous sculptures of the "awakening". Ovid's Pygmalion has inspired many works of literature, some of which are listed below. The popularity of the Pygmalion myth surged in the 19th century. There have also been successful stage-plays based upon the work, such as W. S. Gilbert's "Pygmalion and Galatea " (1871).
Acis and Galatea of Cythera as a political satire against the Sicilian tyrant Dionysius I of Syracuse, whose favourite concubine, Galatea, shared her name with the nymph. Others claim the story was invented to explain the presence of a shrine dedicated to Galatea on Mount Etna. During Renaissance and Baroque times the story emerged once more as a popular theme. In Spain, Luis de Góngora y Argote wrote the much-admired narrative poem, "Fábula de Polifemo y Galatea", published in 1627. It is particularly noted for its depiction of landscape and for the sensual description of the love of Acis and Galatea. It was