Today's image is a portrait of Dido, the queen of Carthage, visibly distressed after her lover, the Trojan hero Aeneas, has abandoned her under strict orders from the gods to go found the Roman Empire. Dido will later commit suicide. The portrait is by the Renaissance artist Dosso Dossi (Giovanni di Niccolò de Luteri); he was born in the village of in San Giovanni del Dosso in Mantua - not far from the birthplace of the Roman poet Vergil who told Dido's story in the Aeneid.
You can also find more myths and legends for the week of March 18-25 here. For more information and links to the actual javascript code, see the Myths & Legends Widget Reference Page.
