A satyr sitting against a tree to right and holding a flute in his right hand, a child playing with a goat to left, plate 23 from "Diversi capricci"
ca. 1644–47
Medium
Etching; third state of four (De Vesme)
Dimensions
Sheet: 3 1/4 × 3 13/16 in. (8.2 × 9.7 cm)
Classification
Prints
Department
Drawings and Prints
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Purchase, Joseph Pulitzer Bequest, 1917
Accession Number
17.50.17-217
Tags
Art Historical Context
This charming etching by Stefano della Bella, created around 1644–47, captures a playful mythological scene from his series *Diversi capricci*. A satyr reclines against a tree, flute in hand, while a young child interacts with a goat nearby. The small print, measuring just over three by three and a half inches, invites close viewing and reflects the artist’s skill in rendering lively, imaginative figures in a compact format. Della Bella, a leading Italian print of the Baroque era, specialized in etchings that blended classical themes with whimsical invention. *Capricci* like this one allowed ...
About the Artist
Stefano della Bella|Nicolas Langlois · 1610–1664
Stefano della Bella (1610-1664) was one of the most prolific and versatile printmakers of the Italian Baroque period, leaving behind 1,052 prints and several thousand drawings that captured the vivid essence of 17th-century European life. Born in Florence on May 18, 1610, to a family of artists, he trained initially as a goldsmith before studying painting under Cesare Dandini and etching under Rem...