satyr - Mythology, Satyrs in Greek mythology and art, Satyrs in Roman mythology, Other references, Baby satyr

In Greek mythology, a minor deity associated with Dionysus; usually depicted with goat-like ears, tail, and legs. Rural, wild and lustful, the satyrs were said to be the brothers of the nymphs.

Mythology

Satyrs were originally imagined as small, human-like creatures with exaggerated appetites who accompanied Dionysus. 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 "straight men" 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 survived.

Satyrs acquired their goat aspect through later conflation with the Roman Faunus, a carefree nature spirit of similar temperament. Mature satyrs are often depicted with goat's horns, while juveniles are often shown with bony nubs on their foreheads. Attic painted vases depict 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 heads.

In some recent works satyrs have become more human, with fewer animal characteristics, until only the tail remains to show that they are satyrs.

Satyrs are not immortal, but grow 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 balding, a humiliating and unbecoming disfigurement in Greek culture.

Satyrs in Greek mythology and art

In earlier Greek art, satyrs appear as old and ugly, but in later art, especially in works of the Attic school, this savage character is softened into a more youthful and graceful aspect. There is a famous statue said to be a copy of a work of Praxiteles, representing a graceful satyr leaning against a tree with a flute in his hand.

Older satyrs were known as sileni, the younger as satyrisci. Greek spirits known as Calicantsars have a noticeable resemblance to the ancient satyrs; In the Dionysus cult, male followers are known as satyrs and female followers as maenads.

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.

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.

Satyrs in Roman mythology

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. Though Roman satire is sometimes thoughtlessly 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 the King James Version of the Bible, Isaiah 13:21 and 34:14, the English word "satyr" is used to represent the Hebrew sh'lrlm, "hairy ones". Christian mythology demonised all pagan nature spirits such as satyrs by associating them with demons and devils, though they do resemble the Jewish goat-man demon Azazel to whom the scapegoats were sent. CS Lewis' The Chronicles of Narnia mentions several Satyrs by name, albeit with their Roman title of faun. (Act 1, Scene 2)

Baby satyr

Baby satyrs, or child satyrs, are mythological creatures related to the satyr.

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).

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.

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.

Baby satyrs can be found in some modern art collections. There are also examples on the internet of baby satyrs being represented in garden sculpture .

Speculative accounts of baby satyrs have cropped up in various local folklores and contemporary mythologies. Some Greek-oriented college parties may include Bacchanalian characters, including baby satyrs. In Disney's 1997 film Hercules, the character Phil is an amalgamation of the Greek hero Philoctetes and the stereotypical satyr; A satyr is a playable character in the game Gladius. In Guillermo del Toro's new film Pan's Labyrinth, a young girl must brave a treacherous maze guarded by the satyr Pan, who also gives her three challenges. In the Age of Mythology game, a satyr is one of the mythical creatures that can be created when the minor god Dionysus is chosen