The Fisherman and the Syren (by Frederic Leighton) Mug

This design features a painting by the British Victorian painter Sir Frederic Leighton (1830–1896). It shows a young Sicilian fisherman whose ship has been wrecked and he is slipping down a rock into the water. He is wearing only a crimson loin-cloth, with the rest of his purple clothing cast aside on the rocks. An attractive water-nymph is grasping the man around his neck, teasing him with the beauty of her body. The nymph is unclothed as she hugs her breast to the sailor; her long wavy blonde hair is laced with pearls. A siren (spelled by Leighton as syren) is a legendary creature from Greek mythology that has the body of a woman and legs of a bird; since they attempt to seduce sailors to their deaths, they have been seen as symbol of the dangerous temptations posed by female beauty and male desire. The original art was painted circa 1856–1858.