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[[Category:Definitions]]
[[Category:Definitions]]
{{Infobox mythical creature
|name              = Satyr
|image            = Satyr maenad Louvre G34.jpg
|caption          = Satyr and maenad, shown on a red-figure Attic cup, ca. 510 BC–500 BC., Louvre, Paris, France
|Grouping          = Legendary creature
|Sub_Grouping      = Hybrid
|Similar_creatures = Minotaur, Centaur, [[Harpy]]
|Mythology        = Greek mythology
|Country          = Greece
|Habitat          = Woodland and<br>mountains
}}
In Greek mythology, a '''satyr''' (UK /ˈsætə/, US /ˈseɪtər/; Greek: σάτυρος satyros, pronounced [sátyros]) is one one of a troop of ithyphallic male companions of Dionysus with horse-like (equine) features, including a horse-tail, horse-like ears, and sometimes a horse-like phallus. Early artistic representations sometimes include horse-like legs, but in 6th-century BC black-figure pottery human legs are the most common.<ref>Timothy Gantz (1996), ''Early Greek Myth'', p. 135.</ref> In Roman Mythology there is a concept similar to satyrs with goat-like features, the faun being half-man, half-goat. Greek-speaking Romans often used the Greek term ''saturos'' when referring to the Latin ''faunus'', and eventually syncretized the two. The female "[[Satyress]]es" were a late invention of poets — that roamed the woods and mountains.<ref name="Branham97p23">Branham (1997) [http://books.google.com/books?id=XrNEns3_yd0C&pg=PR23 p. xxiii]</ref> In myths they are often associated with pipe-playing.


''For other uses of the word [[Succubus]], see [[Succubus (disambiguation)]].''
The satyrs' chief was Silenus, a minor deity associated (like Hermes and Priapus) with fertility. These characters can be found in the only complete remaining satyr play, ''Cyclops,'' by Euripides, and the fragments of Sophocles' ''Ichneutae'' (''Tracking Satyrs''). The satyr play was a short, lighthearted tailpiece performed after each trilogy of tragedies in Athenian festivals honoring Dionysus. There is not enough evidence to determine whether the satyr play regularly drew on the same myths as those dramatized in the tragedies that preceded. The groundbreaking tragic playwright Aeschylus is said to have been especially loved for his satyr plays, but none of them have survived.


Attic painted vases depict mature satyrs as being strongly built with flat noses, large pointed ears, long curly hair, and full beards, with wreaths of vine or ivy circling their balding heads. Satyrs often carry the thyrsus: the rod of Dionysus tipped with a pine cone.
Satyrs acquired their goat-like aspect through later Roman conflation with Faunus, a carefree Italic nature spirit of similar characteristics and identified with the Greek god Pan. Hence satyrs are most commonly described in Latin literature as having the upper half of a man and the lower half of a goat, with a goat's tail in place of the Greek tradition of horse-tailed satyrs; therefore, satyrs became nearly identical with fauns. Mature satyrs are often depicted in Roman art with goat's horns, while juveniles are often shown with bony nubs on their foreheads.
About Satyrs, Praxiteles gives a new interpretation on the subject of free and carefree life. Instead of an elf with pointed ears and repulsive goat hooves, we face a child of nature, pure, but tame and fearless and brutal instincts necessary to enable it to defend itself against threats, and survives even without the help of modern civilization . Above all though, the Satyr with flute has a small companion for him, shows the deep connection with nature, the soft whistle of the wind, the sound of gurgling water of the crystal spring, the birds singing, or perhaps the singing a melody of a human soul that feeds higher feelings.
As Dionysiac creatures they are lovers of wine and women, and they are ready for every physical pleasure. They roam to the music of pipes (''auloi''), cymbals, castanets, and bagpipes, and they love to chase maenads or bacchants (with whom they are obsessed, and whom they often pursue), or in later art, dance with the [[nymph]]s , and have a special form of dance called sikinnis. Because of their love of wine, they are often represented holding wine cups, and they appear often in the decorations on wine cups.




==In Greek Mythology and Art==
[[File:SatryWithWomen.jpg|thumb|Satyr on a mountain goat, drinking with women, in a Gandhara relief of 2nd-4th century CE]]
In earlier Greek art, Silenos appear as old and ugly, but in later art, especially in works of the Attic school, this savage characteristic is softened into a more youthful and graceful aspect.


This transformation or humanization of the Satyr appears throughout late Greek art. Another example of this shift occurs in the portrayal of Medusa and in that of the Amazon characters who are traditionally depicted as barbaric and uncivilized. A very humanized Satyr is depicted in a work of Praxiteles known as the "Resting Satyr".


[[Image:Komos Douris BM E768.jpg|thumb|200px|A bald, bearded, horse-tailed satyr balances a winecup on his erect penis, on an  Attic red-figured ''psykter'', ca. 500-490 BC.]]
Greek spirits [non-classical] known as Calicantsars have a noticeable resemblance to the ancient satyrs; they have goats' ears and the feet of donkeys or goats or horses, are covered with hair, and love women and the dance.
In Greek mythology, '''satyrs''' (in Ancient Greek, '''Σάτυροι''' &mdash; '''Sátyroi''') are a troop of male companions of Pan and Dionysus— "[[Satyress|satyresses]]" were a late invention of poets— that roamed the woods and mountains. In mythology they are often associated with sex drive and vase-painters often portrayed them with uncontrollable erections.


==Mythology==
Although they are not mentioned by Homer, in a fragment of Hesiod's works they are called brothers of the mountain nymphs and Kuretes, strongly connected with the cult of Dionysus. In the Dionysus cult, male followers are known as satyrs and female followers as maenads or bacchants.
The satyrs' chief was called Silenus, a minor deity associated (like Hermes and Priapus) with fertility. These characters can be found in the only remaining satyr play ''Cyclops'' by Euripedes and the fragments of Sophocles' ''The Tracking Satyrs'' (''Ichneutae''). The satyr play was a lighthearted follow-up attached to the end of each trilogy of tragedies in Athenian festivals honoring Dionysus. These plays would take a lighthearted approach to the heavier subject matter of the tragedies in the series, featuring heroes speaking in tragic iambic verse and taking their situation seriously as to the flippant, irreverent and obscene remarks and antics of the satyrs. The groundbreaking tragic playwright Aeschylus is said to have been especially loved for his satyr plays, but none of them has survived.
[[Image:Satyros Cdm Paris 509.jpg|thumb|left|Another horse-tailed satyr suspends his pipe-case from his erection, on an Attic black-figure plate, 520–500 BCE, from Vulci]]
Attic painted vases depict mature satyrs as being strongly built with flat noses, large pointed ears, long curly hair, and full beards, with wreaths of vine or ivy circling their balding heads. Satyrs often carry the thyrsus: the rod of Dionysus tipped with a pine cone.


Satyrs acquired their goat-like aspect through later Roman conflation with Faunus, a carefree Italic nature spirit of similar temperament.  Hence satyrs are most commonly described in Latin literature as having the upper half of a man and the lower half of a goat, with a goat's tail in place of the Greek tradition of horse-tailed satyrs. Mature satyrs are often depicted in Roman art with goat's horns, while juveniles are often shown with bony nubs on their foreheads.  
In Attica there was a species of drama known as the legends of gods and heroes, and the chorus was composed of satyrs and sileni. In the Athenian satyr plays of the 5th century BC, the chorus commented on the action. This "satyric drama" burlesqued the serious events of the mythic past with lewd pantomime and subversive mockery. One complete satyr play from the 5th century survives, the ''Cyclops'' of Euripides.


In some recent works satyrs have become more human, with fewer animal characteristics, until only the tail remains to show that they are satyrs. In most books, drawings, etc., however, they still have their general half-goat, half-man appearance.
The Satyr and the Traveller, one of Aesop's Fables, features the satyr as the benevolent host for a traveler in the forest in winter. The satyr is bewildered by the man's claim to be able to blow hot and cold with the same breath, first to warm his hands, then to cool his porridge, and turns him out for this inconstancy.
[[Image:SatryWithWomen.jpg|thumb|Satyr on a mountain goat, drinking with women. Gandhara, 2nd-4th century.]]
Satyrs are described as roguish but faint-hearted folk &mdash; subversive and dangerous, yet shy and cowardly. As Dionysiac creatures they are lovers of wine, women, and are ready for every physical pleasure. They roam to the music of pipes (''auloi''), cymbals, castanets, and bagpipes, and love to dance with the [[nymph]]s (with whom they are obsessed, and whom they often pursue), and have a special form of dance called sikinnis. Because of their love of wine, they are often represented holding winecups, and appear often in the decorations on winecups.


Some satyrs are depicted as old. On painted vases and other Greek art, satyrs are represented in the three stages of a man's life: mature satyrs are bearded, and are shown as fat and balding, both a humiliating and unbecoming disfigurement in Greek culture.
A papyrus bearing a long fragment of a satyr play by Sophocles, given the title 'Tracking Satyrs' (''Ichneutae''), was found at Oxyrhynchus in Egypt, 1907.


===In Greek mythology and art===
[[Image:Euphronios 0012.jpg|thumb|left|200px|Detail of an Attic chalice depicting a satyr with a tail and erect penis, Euphronios, end of the 6th century]]
[[Image:Satyr maenad Louvre G34.jpg|thumb|Satyr and maenad, shown on a red-figure Attic cup, ca. 510 BC–500 BC., Louvre, Paris, France]]
In earlier Greek art, satyrs appear as old and ugly, but in later art, especially in works of the Attic school, this savage characteristic is softened into a more youthful and graceful aspect.


This transformation or humanization of the Satyr appears throughout late Greek art. Another example of this shift occurs in the portrayal of Medusa and in that of the Amazons, characters who are traditionally depicted as barbaric and uncivilized. The compassionate representation of the Satyr in a work of Praxiteles known as the Resting Satyr shows the level of Greek civilization and their desire to accept all types of people.  
==In Roman Mythology and Art==
Faunus were conflated in the popular and poetic imagination with Latin spirits of woodland and with the rustic Greek god Pan. Roman satyrs were described as goat-like from the haunches to the hooves, and were often pictured with larger horns, even ram's horns. Roman poets often conflated them with the fauns.


Older satyrs were known as sileni, the younger as satyrisci. The hare was the symbol of the shy and timid satyr. Greek spirits known as Calicantsars have a noticeable resemblance to the ancient satyrs; they have goats' ears and the feet of donkeys or goats, are covered with hair, and love women and the dance.  
Roman satire is a literary form, a poetic essay that was a vehicle for biting, subversive social and personal criticism. Though Roman satire is sometimes linked to the Greek satyr plays, satire's only connection to the satyric drama is through the subversive nature of the satyrs themselves, as forces in opposition to urbanity, decorum, and civilization itself.


Although they are not mentioned by Homer, in a fragment of Hesiod's works they are called brothers of the mountain nymphs and Kuretes, strongly connected with the cult of Dionysus, and are an idle and worthless race. In the Dionysus cult, male followers are known as satyrs and female followers as maenads or bacchants.


In Attica there was a species of drama known as the legends of gods and heroes, and the chorus was composed of satyrs and sileni. In the Athenian satyr plays of the 5th century BC, the chorus commented on the action. This "satyric drama" burlesqued the serious events of the mythic past with lewd pantomime and subversive mockery. One complete satyr play from the 5th century survives, the ''Cyclops'' of Euripides.
==Other References==
In many versions of the Bible, Isaiah 13:21 and 34:14, the English word "satyr" is used to represent the Hebrew ''se'irim'', "hairy ones," from "sa'ir" or "goat". There is an allusion to the practice of sacrificing to the se'irim (KJV "devils"; ASV "he-goats") in Leviticus 17:7. They may correspond to the "shaggy demon of the mountain-pass" (''azabb al-‘akaba'') of old Arab legend.<ref>"Satyrs," ''Encyclopaedia Britannica'', 11th ed. (1911), vol. 24, p. 234.</ref> It may otherwise refer to literal goats, and the worship of such.<ref>Palestine Exploration Quarterly, London, 1959, p. 57</ref>


A papyrus bearing a long fragment of a satyr play by Sophocles, given the title 'Tracking Satyrs' (''Ichneutae''), was found at Oxyrhynchus in Egypt, 1907.
The savant Sir William Jones often refers to the Indian mythological Vānaras as satyrs/mountaineers in his translations of Sanskrit works. This view is generally held to be a mistake by present day researchers.


===In Roman mythology and art===
[[Image:Villacasale03.jpg|thumb|A Satyr depicted on a Roman mosaic in Villa Romana del Casale, an archeological site near Piazza Armerina in Sicily, Italy]]
[[Image:IMG 05951.JPG|thumb|right|This satyr gargoyle, affixed to the Cathedral of St. Vincent (Bern, Switzerland), is posed in the act of choking a mermaid.]]
Roman satyrs were conflated in the popular and poetic imagination with Latin spirits of woodland and with the rustic spirit Pan, called the Panes.


Roman satyrs were described as goatlike from the haunches to the hooves, and were often pictured with larger horns, even ram's horns. Roman poets often conflated them with the fauns.
==Baby Satyr==
'''Baby satyrs''', or '''child satyrs''', are mythological creatures related to the satyr. They appear in popular folklore, classical artworks, film, and in various forms of local art.
[[File:Ladysatyr.jpg|thumb|right|''Female Satyr Carrying Two Putti'' by Claude Michel (1738–1814)]]


Roman satire is a literary form, a poetic essay that was a vehicle for biting, subversive social and personal criticism. Though Roman satire is sometimes linked to the Greek satyr plays, satire's only connection to the satyric drama is through the subversive nature of the satyrs themselves, as forces in opposition to urbanity, decorum, and civilization itself.
Some renaissance works depict young satyrs being tended to by older, sober satyrs, while there are also some representations of child satyrs taking part in Bacchanalian / Dionysian rituals (including drinking alcohol, playing musical instruments, and dancing).


==Other references==
The presence of a baby or child satyr in a classical work, such as on a Greek vase, was mainly an aesthetic choice on the part of the artist. However, the role of a child in Greek art might imply a further meaning for baby satyrs: Eros, the son of Aphrodite, is consistently represented as a child or baby, and Bacchus, the divine sponsor of satyrs, is seen in numerous works as a baby, often in the company of the satyrs. A prominent instance of a baby satyr outside ancient Greece is Albrecht Dürer's 1505 engraving, "Musical Satyr and Nymph with Baby (Satyr's Family)". There is also a Victorian period napkin ring depicting a baby satyr next to a barrel, which further represents the perception of baby satyrs as partaking in the Bacchanalian festivities.<ref>''Revivals, Reveries, and Reconstructions: Images of Antiquity in Prints from 1500 to 1800'', [http://www.philamuseum.org/exhibitions/2000/30.html Philamuseum.org], exhibition at the Philadelphia Museum of Art.</ref>
In the King James Version of the Bible, Isaiah 13:21 and 34:14, the English word "satyr" is used to represent the Hebrew שעירים, ''hairy ones.'' In Hebrew folklore, שעירים are a type of demon or supernatural being which inhabits waste places. There is an allusion to the practice of sacrificing to the שעירים (often translated as "devils") in Leviticus 17:7. They correspond to the "shaggy demon of the mountain-pass" (أزب الاكب) of old Arab legend.


The savant Sir William Jones often refers to the Indian mythological Vānaras as satyrs/mountaineers in his translations of Sanskrit works.
There are also many works of art of the rococo period depicting child or baby satyrs in Bacchanalian celebrations. Some works depict female satyrs with their children; others describe the child satyrs as playing an active role in the events, including one instance of a painting by Jean Raoux (1677–1735). "Mlle Prévost as a Bacchante" depicts a child satyr playing a tambourine while Mlle Prévost, a dancer at the Opéra, is dancing as part of the Bacchanal festivities.<ref>[http://www.unh.edu/music/Icon/igtamms.htm UNH.edu]</ref>


==Baby satyr==
[[Image:Ladysatyr.jpg|thumb|left|200px|A female satyr holding two infants, by Clodion (Walters Art Gallery, Baltimore)]]
[[Image:Tizian 048.jpg|thumb|A child satyr (center) depicted in Titian's painting Bacchus and Ariadne c.1520-1523]]'''Baby satyrs''', or '''child satyrs''', are mythological creatures related to the satyr.  They appear in popular folklore, classical artworks, film, and in various forms of local art.


Some classical works depict young satyrs being tended to by older, sober satyrs, while there are also some representations of child satyrs taking part in Bacchanalian/Dionysian rituals (including drinking alcohol, playing musical instruments, and dancing).
==Satyrs and Orangutan==
In the 17th century, the satyr legend came to be associated with stories of the orangutan, a great ape now found only in Sumatra and Borneo. Many early accounts which apparently refer to this animal describe the males as being sexually aggressive towards human women and towards females of its own species. The first scientific name given to this ape was ''Simia satyrus''.<ref>[http://www.nature.com/nature/journal/v118/n2958/abs/118049b0.html C. W. Stiles. 1926. The zoological names ''Simia'', ''S. satyrus'', and ''Pithecus'', and their possible suppression. Nature 118, 49-49.]</ref>


The presence of a baby or child satyr in a classical work, such as on a Greek vase, was mainly an aesthetic choice on the part of the artist.  However, the role of a child in Greek art might imply a further meaning for baby satyrs: Eros, the son of Aphrodite, is consistently represented as a child or baby, and Bacchus, the divine sponsor of satyrs, is seen in numerous works as a baby, often in the company of the satyrs. A prominent instance of a baby satyr outside ancient Greece is Albrecht Dürer's 1505 engraving, "Musical Satyr and Nymph with Baby (Satyr's Family)". There is also a Victorian-era napkin ring depicting a baby satyr next to a barrel, which further represents the perception of baby satyrs as partaking in the Bacchanalian festivities.
[http://www.philamuseum.org/exhibitions/exhibits/revivals.shtml See ''Revivals, Reveries, and Reconstructions: Images of Antiquity in Prints from 1500 to 1800'', an exhibition at the Philadelphia Museum of Art.]


There are also many works of art of the rococo period depicting child or baby satyrs in Bacchanalian celebrations. Some works depict female satyrs with their children; others describe the child satyrs as playing an active role in the events, including one instance of a painting by Jean Raoux (1677&ndash;1735).  "Mlle Prévost as a Bacchante" depicts a child satyr playing a tambourine while Mlle Prévost, a dancer at the Opéra, is dancing as part of the Bacchanal festivities. [http://www.unh.edu/music/Icon/igtamms.htm]
==Varieties==
* Island Satyrs, which according to Pausanias<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.theoi.com/Thaumasios/SatyroiNesioi.html|title=Island Satyrs|accessdate=2008-12-28|work=Theoi Greek Mythology}}</ref> were a savage race of red-haired, satyr-like creatures from an isolated island chain.
* Libyan Satyr, which according to Pliny the Elder<ref name="Libyan Aegipans &amp; Satyrs">{{cite web|url=http://www.theoi.com/Thaumasios/SatyroiLibyes.html|title=Libyan Aegipans &amp; Satyrs|accessdate=2008-12-28|work=Theoi Greek Mythology}}</ref> lived in Libya and resembled humans with long, pointed ears and horse tails, similar to the Greek nature-spirit satyrs.


==Satyrs and orangutan==
Medieval bestiaries also mention several varieties of satyrs, sometimes comparing them to apes or monkeys.<ref>Debra Hassing, "Sex in the Bestiaries," in ''The Mark of the Beast:The Medieval Bestiary in Art, Life, and Literature'' (New York: Garland Publishing, 1999), p. 73 and 88 (note 16); Willene B. Clark, ''A Medieval Book of Beasts. The Second-Family Bestiary: Commentary, Art, Text and Translation'' (Boydell Press, 2006), pp. 133–132.</ref>


In the 17th century, the satyr legend came to be associated with stories of the orangutan, a great ape now found only in Sumatra and Borneo.  Many early accounts which apparently refer to this animal describe the males as being sexually aggressive towards human women and towards females of its own species.  The first scientific name given to this ape was ''Simia satyrus''.


==In popular culture==
==Notes==
* The Satyr is an oft-made reference to the Dionysian in Friedrich Nietzsche's The Birth of Tragedy.
<references/>
* The Pastoral Symphony section of Disney's Fantasia features baby satyrs, sometimes called Fauns.
* In Guillermo del Toro's 2006 film Pan's Labyrinth, a young girl encounters a faun at the entrance to a magical kingdom.  He gives her three challenges to determine if she is the long-lost princess of the Underworld.
* In Disney's 1997 film ''Hercules'', the character Phil is an amalgamation of the hero Philoctetes and the stereotypical satyr; his circumstances are those of the classical Philoctetes, but he looks like a satyr and exhibits satyr-like desires for wine and women.
* In Ridley Scott's ''Legend'', the villain Darkness bears many similarities to a satyr (both in appearance and in nature). Scott said that he wanted Darkness to be "very sexual", so wanted him to be a satyr.
* The Satyr is the name of a satirical newspaper written by students of Manchester University.
* Satyr is the name of the union of the four revues at the faculty of science of the university of  Copenhagen.
* Gnostic satyrs of both genders appear in Umberto Eco's ''Baudolino''.
* In the computer game series Warcraf, Satyrs appear as a race of [[Demon]]ic creatures, as corrupted [http://www.wowwiki.com/Night_elf Night Elves].
* Satyrs appear occasionally throughout the Chronicles of Narnia series, by C. S. Lewis.
* Grover Underwood in the Percy Jackson & The Olympians book series is a satyr.
*Satyr is the pseudonym of Sigurd Wongraven, one of the founding members of black metal band Satyricon.
*Satyr is also the title of an award winning adult film starring Jenna Jameson.
*Satyr is one of many species of mutated creatures found on Earth in Roger Zelazny's 1966 Hugo award winning novel ''This Immortal''.
* In Hans Christian Andersen's fairy tale "The Shepherdess and the Sweep" (1845), a bearded and horned satyr carved into the mahogany door of a curio cabinet is known as "Major-general-field-sergeant-commander Billy goat's legs" and threatens a porcelain shepherdess on a nearby table top with taking her for his wife. The shepherdess shudders in horror and flees the house with her lover, a porcelain chimney sweep with a princely face "as fair and rosy as a girl's".
* The Christian antagonist, [[Satan]], is often depicted as a satyr, the link being pagan religions and the 'sinful' pleasures that satyrs enjoy.
* In the video game God of War, the satyr is an enemy found towards the end of the game. They are depicted as extremely skilled fighters and are some of the toughest enemies found.
* In Brian Keene's Dark Hollow (previously published as The Rutting Season) a satyr is living near a small town and originally thought to be a serial killer.
* In the game Mortal Kombat: Armageddon, the centaur Motaro, along with his entire race, have been cursed.  In the game, the centaurs are said to have been turned into minotaurs, however, they resemble satyrs.


==See also==
*[[Satyress]]


==References==
==References==
* Harry Thurston Peck ''Harpers Dictionary of Classical Antiquities'', 1898: "Faunus", "Pan", and "Silenus".
* Harry Thurston Peck ''Harpers Dictionary of Classical Antiquities'', 1898: "Faunus", "Pan", and "Silenus".
* Branham, R Bracht and Kinney, Daniel (1997) ''Introduction'' to Petronius' ''Satyrica'' [http://books.google.com/books?id=XrNEns3_yd0C&pg=PR13 pp.xiii-xxvi]


==External links==
==External links==
*[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Satyr The original source of this page at Wikipedia]
*[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Satyr The original source of this article at Wikipedia]
*[http://www.theoi.com/Georgikos/Satyroi.html Satyroi]
* [http://www.theoi.com/Georgikos/Satyroi.html Theoi Project: Satyroi]
*[http://www.newanimal.org/satyr.htm Satyrs in Cryptozoology]
* [http://www.newanimal.org/satyr.htm Satyrs in Cryptozoology]
*[http://jewishencyclopedia.com/view.jsp?artid=274&letter=S&search=Satyr Jewish Encyclopedia: Satyr]
* [http://jewishencyclopedia.com/view.jsp?artid=274&letter=S&search=Satyr Jewish Encyclopedia: Satyr]

Revision as of 09:22, 30 July 2014

Satyr

Satyr and maenad, shown on a red-figure Attic cup, ca. 510 BC–500 BC., Louvre, Paris, France
Grouping Legendary creature
Sub grouping Hybrid
Similar creatures Minotaur, Centaur, Harpy
Mythology Greek mythology
Country Greece
Habitat Woodland and
mountains

In Greek mythology, a satyr (UK /ˈsætə/, US /ˈseɪtər/; Greek: σάτυρος satyros, pronounced [sátyros]) is one one of a troop of ithyphallic male companions of Dionysus with horse-like (equine) features, including a horse-tail, horse-like ears, and sometimes a horse-like phallus. Early artistic representations sometimes include horse-like legs, but in 6th-century BC black-figure pottery human legs are the most common.[1] In Roman Mythology there is a concept similar to satyrs with goat-like features, the faun being half-man, half-goat. Greek-speaking Romans often used the Greek term saturos when referring to the Latin faunus, and eventually syncretized the two. The female "Satyresses" were a late invention of poets — that roamed the woods and mountains.[2] In myths they are often associated with pipe-playing.

The satyrs' chief was Silenus, a minor deity associated (like Hermes and Priapus) with fertility. These characters can be found in the only complete remaining satyr play, Cyclops, by Euripides, and the fragments of Sophocles' Ichneutae (Tracking Satyrs). The satyr play was a short, lighthearted tailpiece performed after each trilogy of tragedies in Athenian festivals honoring Dionysus. There is not enough evidence to determine whether the satyr play regularly drew on the same myths as those dramatized in the tragedies that preceded. The groundbreaking tragic playwright Aeschylus is said to have been especially loved for his satyr plays, but none of them have survived.

Attic painted vases depict mature satyrs as being strongly built with flat noses, large pointed ears, long curly hair, and full beards, with wreaths of vine or ivy circling their balding heads. Satyrs often carry the thyrsus: the rod of Dionysus tipped with a pine cone.

Satyrs acquired their goat-like aspect through later Roman conflation with Faunus, a carefree Italic nature spirit of similar characteristics and identified with the Greek god Pan. Hence satyrs are most commonly described in Latin literature as having the upper half of a man and the lower half of a goat, with a goat's tail in place of the Greek tradition of horse-tailed satyrs; therefore, satyrs became nearly identical with fauns. Mature satyrs are often depicted in Roman art with goat's horns, while juveniles are often shown with bony nubs on their foreheads.

About Satyrs, Praxiteles gives a new interpretation on the subject of free and carefree life. Instead of an elf with pointed ears and repulsive goat hooves, we face a child of nature, pure, but tame and fearless and brutal instincts necessary to enable it to defend itself against threats, and survives even without the help of modern civilization . Above all though, the Satyr with flute has a small companion for him, shows the deep connection with nature, the soft whistle of the wind, the sound of gurgling water of the crystal spring, the birds singing, or perhaps the singing a melody of a human soul that feeds higher feelings.

As Dionysiac creatures they are lovers of wine and women, and they are ready for every physical pleasure. They roam to the music of pipes (auloi), cymbals, castanets, and bagpipes, and they love to chase maenads or bacchants (with whom they are obsessed, and whom they often pursue), or in later art, dance with the nymphs , and have a special form of dance called sikinnis. Because of their love of wine, they are often represented holding wine cups, and they appear often in the decorations on wine cups.


In Greek Mythology and Art

Satyr on a mountain goat, drinking with women, in a Gandhara relief of 2nd-4th century CE

In earlier Greek art, Silenos appear as old and ugly, but in later art, especially in works of the Attic school, this savage characteristic is softened into a more youthful and graceful aspect.

This transformation or humanization of the Satyr appears throughout late Greek art. Another example of this shift occurs in the portrayal of Medusa and in that of the Amazon characters who are traditionally depicted as barbaric and uncivilized. A very humanized Satyr is depicted in a work of Praxiteles known as the "Resting Satyr".

Greek spirits [non-classical] known as Calicantsars have a noticeable resemblance to the ancient satyrs; they have goats' ears and the feet of donkeys or goats or horses, are covered with hair, and love women and the dance.

Although they are not mentioned by Homer, in a fragment of Hesiod's works they are called brothers of the mountain nymphs and Kuretes, strongly connected with the cult of Dionysus. In the Dionysus cult, male followers are known as satyrs and female followers as maenads or bacchants.

In Attica there was a species of drama known as the legends of gods and heroes, and the chorus was composed of satyrs and sileni. In the Athenian satyr plays of the 5th century BC, the chorus commented on the action. This "satyric drama" burlesqued the serious events of the mythic past with lewd pantomime and subversive mockery. One complete satyr play from the 5th century survives, the Cyclops of Euripides.

The Satyr and the Traveller, one of Aesop's Fables, features the satyr as the benevolent host for a traveler in the forest in winter. The satyr is bewildered by the man's claim to be able to blow hot and cold with the same breath, first to warm his hands, then to cool his porridge, and turns him out for this inconstancy.

A papyrus bearing a long fragment of a satyr play by Sophocles, given the title 'Tracking Satyrs' (Ichneutae), was found at Oxyrhynchus in Egypt, 1907.


In Roman Mythology and Art

Faunus were conflated in the popular and poetic imagination with Latin spirits of woodland and with the rustic Greek god Pan. Roman satyrs were described as goat-like from the haunches to the hooves, and were often pictured with larger horns, even ram's horns. Roman poets often conflated them with the fauns.

Roman satire is a literary form, a poetic essay that was a vehicle for biting, subversive social and personal criticism. Though Roman satire is sometimes linked to the Greek satyr plays, satire's only connection to the satyric drama is through the subversive nature of the satyrs themselves, as forces in opposition to urbanity, decorum, and civilization itself.


Other References

In many versions of the Bible, Isaiah 13:21 and 34:14, the English word "satyr" is used to represent the Hebrew se'irim, "hairy ones," from "sa'ir" or "goat". There is an allusion to the practice of sacrificing to the se'irim (KJV "devils"; ASV "he-goats") in Leviticus 17:7. They may correspond to the "shaggy demon of the mountain-pass" (azabb al-‘akaba) of old Arab legend.[3] It may otherwise refer to literal goats, and the worship of such.[4]

The savant Sir William Jones often refers to the Indian mythological Vānaras as satyrs/mountaineers in his translations of Sanskrit works. This view is generally held to be a mistake by present day researchers.


Baby Satyr

Baby satyrs, or child satyrs, are mythological creatures related to the satyr. They appear in popular folklore, classical artworks, film, and in various forms of local art.

Female Satyr Carrying Two Putti by Claude Michel (1738–1814)

Some renaissance works depict young satyrs being tended to by older, sober satyrs, while there are also some representations of child satyrs taking part in Bacchanalian / Dionysian rituals (including drinking alcohol, playing musical instruments, and dancing).

The presence of a baby or child satyr in a classical work, such as on a Greek vase, was mainly an aesthetic choice on the part of the artist. However, the role of a child in Greek art might imply a further meaning for baby satyrs: Eros, the son of Aphrodite, is consistently represented as a child or baby, and Bacchus, the divine sponsor of satyrs, is seen in numerous works as a baby, often in the company of the satyrs. A prominent instance of a baby satyr outside ancient Greece is Albrecht Dürer's 1505 engraving, "Musical Satyr and Nymph with Baby (Satyr's Family)". There is also a Victorian period napkin ring depicting a baby satyr next to a barrel, which further represents the perception of baby satyrs as partaking in the Bacchanalian festivities.[5]

There are also many works of art of the rococo period depicting child or baby satyrs in Bacchanalian celebrations. Some works depict female satyrs with their children; others describe the child satyrs as playing an active role in the events, including one instance of a painting by Jean Raoux (1677–1735). "Mlle Prévost as a Bacchante" depicts a child satyr playing a tambourine while Mlle Prévost, a dancer at the Opéra, is dancing as part of the Bacchanal festivities.[6]


Satyrs and Orangutan

In the 17th century, the satyr legend came to be associated with stories of the orangutan, a great ape now found only in Sumatra and Borneo. Many early accounts which apparently refer to this animal describe the males as being sexually aggressive towards human women and towards females of its own species. The first scientific name given to this ape was Simia satyrus.[7]


Varieties

  • Island Satyrs, which according to Pausanias[8] were a savage race of red-haired, satyr-like creatures from an isolated island chain.
  • Libyan Satyr, which according to Pliny the Elder[9] lived in Libya and resembled humans with long, pointed ears and horse tails, similar to the Greek nature-spirit satyrs.

Medieval bestiaries also mention several varieties of satyrs, sometimes comparing them to apes or monkeys.[10]


Notes

  1. ↑ Timothy Gantz (1996), Early Greek Myth, p. 135.
  2. ↑ Branham (1997) p. xxiii
  3. ↑ "Satyrs," Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th ed. (1911), vol. 24, p. 234.
  4. ↑ Palestine Exploration Quarterly, London, 1959, p. 57
  5. ↑ Revivals, Reveries, and Reconstructions: Images of Antiquity in Prints from 1500 to 1800, Philamuseum.org, exhibition at the Philadelphia Museum of Art.
  6. ↑ UNH.edu
  7. ↑ C. W. Stiles. 1926. The zoological names Simia, S. satyrus, and Pithecus, and their possible suppression. Nature 118, 49-49.
  8. ↑ "Island Satyrs". Theoi Greek Mythology. http://www.theoi.com/Thaumasios/SatyroiNesioi.html. Retrieved 2008-12-28. 
  9. ↑ "Libyan Aegipans & Satyrs". Theoi Greek Mythology. http://www.theoi.com/Thaumasios/SatyroiLibyes.html. Retrieved 2008-12-28. 
  10. ↑ Debra Hassing, "Sex in the Bestiaries," in The Mark of the Beast:The Medieval Bestiary in Art, Life, and Literature (New York: Garland Publishing, 1999), p. 73 and 88 (note 16); Willene B. Clark, A Medieval Book of Beasts. The Second-Family Bestiary: Commentary, Art, Text and Translation (Boydell Press, 2006), pp. 133–132.


References

  • Harry Thurston Peck Harpers Dictionary of Classical Antiquities, 1898: "Faunus", "Pan", and "Silenus".
  • Branham, R Bracht and Kinney, Daniel (1997) Introduction to Petronius' Satyrica pp.xiii-xxvi


External links

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