Much of the conversation around
Primavera has rightfully centered on distinguishing and identifying the scenes’ mythological figures. The painting, which measures a sizable 80 by 124 inches, is intended to be read from right to left.
The generally accepted reading is as follows: the blue figure of Zephyrus, the cold wind of March on the right, clasps the nymph Chloris, whom he will kidnap. Zephyrus will later marry Chloris and she will be transformed into Flora, the goddess of spring. Botticelli has signaled this transformation by overlapping the figure of Chloris and that of Flora, who appears as the third figure from right, elegantly scattering flowers. At roughly center and slightly to the back of the composition is a figure widely agreed to be Venus, in a dress of gray-blue and a red shawl. Above Venus is her companion, Cupid, blindfolded, with his arrow aimed.