Antefix with Satyr Face
c. 525–480 BC
Maker Unknown
Greek and Roman Art
Antefix with Satyr Face, c. 525–480 BC. Greek/South Italian, Taranto. Terracotta; overall: 25 cm (9 13/16 in.). The Cleveland Museum of Art, The Charles W. Harkness Endowment Fund 1926.552 This frontal satyr face, easily recognized by its snub nose and equine ears, served numerous purposes. As an antefix, it capped the open end of a roof tile, preventing wind, water, and pests from entering the building below. With its naturalistic mold-made features, enhanced with pigment and perhaps additional stamped and carved details, the antefix would also have provided striking visual ornament, especially when seen in long rows high above. Despite the connections between satyrs and Dionysos, not all satyr-head antefixes belonged to Dionysian buildings.
- Maker/Artist
- Maker Unknown
- Classification
- Sculpture
- Formatted Medium
- terracotta
- Medium
- terracotta
- Dimensions
- Overall: 25 cm (9 13/16 in.)
- Departments
- Greek and Roman Art
- Accession Number
- 1926.552
- Credit Line
- The Charles W. Harkness Endowment Fund
- Exhibitions
- The Centaur's Smile: The Human Animal in Early Greek Art, Princeton University Art Museum (10/11/2003 - 1/18/2004) and Museum of Fine Arts, Houston (2/22/2003 - 5/16/2004): "The Centaur's Smile: The Human Animal in Early Greek Art", exh. cat. no. 60, p. 251-252.
- Rights Statement
- CC0
- Museum Location
- 102C Greek
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