Hiram Powers looked to ancient Greek and Roman art for models of ideal beauty and used white marble to connect his work to this tradition. Powers spent most of his career in Florence, Italy, where examples of classical sculpture were abundant. The serenity and idealized features of Proserpine stand in stark contrast to the Roman goddess’s disturbing tale. According to myth, Proserpine was abducted by the ruler of the underworld and made his queen, allowed to return to earth for only six months each year.