Satyr Family (Pan and his Family), from the Scherzi
Giovanni Battista Tiepolo
ca. 1743–50 · Etching · Drawings and Prints
Tiepolo who was famed for his luminous frescoes populated by Olympian gods and allegorical figures, gave free reign to his fantasy in his print series the Scherzi, a number of which depict the nymphs and satyrs who were followers of Bacchus (the Greek Dionysos), god of wine. From the Renaissance on, satyrs are often indistinguishable from Pan—the goat-legged figure in ancient art—yet the seated figure here, with his horns and bristly crown, pipes in hand, could be intended as the woodland god.
- Artist
- Giovanni Battista Tiepolo
- Date
- ca. 1743–50
- Medium
- Etching
- Department
- Drawings and Prints
- Credit line
- Purchase, The Elisha Whittelsey Collection, The Elisha Whittelsey Fund, Dodge and Pfeiffer Funds, and Joseph Pulitzer Bequest; and Gift of Bertina Suida Manning and Robert L. Manning, 1976
