Dancing Satyr
Unknown Artist
500–475 BCE
Medium
painted terracotta
Dimensions
9.8 × 10.8 × 4.7 cm
Classification
Sculpture
Department
Greek and Roman Art
Museum
Cleveland Museum of Art
Credit
John L. Severance Fund
Accession Number
1992.352.3
About this artwork
Part man and part beast, satyrs were mythical woodland creatures. In art, they were depicted with the ears and tail of a goat or horse, sometimes with hooves, and in a high state of sexual arousal. Satyrs often accompanied Dionysus, the god of wine, in his drinking bouts and other escapades. These three probably once decorated the rim of a large punch-bowl–shaped vessel for serving wine.