After Botticelli completed "Primavera," he finished another series of paintings in 1483. This work was based on a story from The Decameron and was likewise used to decorate a newlyweds' chamber.
In Ravenna, Romagna, there was a young man named Onesti. Like many young men, he fell in love with a girl, but the young lady came from a family far above his own and treated him with utter coldness.
The successive blows left Onesti heartbroken. He packed his bags and left Ravenna with several friends, arriving at a place called Chiassi to nurse his wounded heart.
Then one day, while wandering absentmindedly, he entered a forest and suddenly heard sharp cries that seemed to come from a woman. Instinctively, he went to see what had happened. Before long, he saw an exceptionally beautiful woman in a thorny thicket. Her hair hung loose, she wore not a stitch of clothing, and branches and thorns had torn her flesh all over. She ran as she wept bitterly.
He also saw two savage dogs pursuing her. Behind her rode a knight on a black horse, his face filled with fury, as though he meant to kill her.
The horrifying sight terrified Onesti, yet he pitied the unfortunate woman and wanted to save her. But he had no weapon, so he snapped off a branch to use as a club and rushed toward the two dogs.
"You're a fully armed knight, yet you want to kill a woman and set two dogs on her as if she were some wild beast. How utterly despicable!" Onesti shouted fearlessly at the knight.
The knight saw Onesti and told him a story. He had loved the naked woman deeply, but she had treated him coldly and mercilessly. In despair, he killed her, then drove a dagger