Greek terracotta depicting Papasilenus and an actor, ex. Faber-Castell
Greek terracotta depicting Papasilenus and an actor, ex. Faber-Castell
Greek terracotta depicting Papasilenus and an actor, ex. Faber-Castell
Greek terracotta depicting Papasilenus and an actor, ex. Faber-Castell
Greek terracotta depicting Papasilenus and an actor, ex. Faber-Castell
Greek terracotta depicting Papasilenus and an actor, ex. Faber-Castell

Greek terracotta depicting Papasilenus and an actor, ex. Faber-Castell

G83

£450.00

Available

A hollow moulded terracotta figure depicting Papasilenus (an older figure of Silenus) in a lasvicious embrace with a youth whose buttocks are displayed prominently. The youth’s face is turned impossibly to the back and this may therefore be a comic mask strung over the rear of the head, indicating that the younger figure is an actor.

Silenus was a companion and tutor to the wine god Dionysus. He was typically depicted older than the satyrs of the Dionysian retinue (thiasos), and is thought to be differentiated from a satyr by having the attributes of a horse rather than a goat (in this case distinguished by the tall ears). Silenus presided over other daimons and was linked to musical creativity, prophetic ecstasy, drunken joy, drunken dances and gestures.

Culture
Greek, Hellenistic, c. 3rd Century BC

Size
8.3 x 4.8 cms

Condition
Surface worn, intact as shown

Provenance
Ex. The Erotica Collection of Christian von Faber-Castell, Switzerland; acquired late 1970’s. With Charles Ede Ltd, London, 1999. With Jean-David Cahn, Switzerland, 2014 (Cahn Auktionen AG, No. 9, lot 103). Ex. Dr Gerhard Miksche, Huddinge, Sweden, and by family descent since 2014. A photocopy of the 2014 Cahn auction receipt (with illustration) accompanies the figure. Black ink inscription “CFC” under the base.

As a member of the aristocratic industrialist Faber-Castell family, Christian was able to collect from a young age and his antiquities were displayed at various times in German and Swiss museums before the collection was dispersed.

SKU: G83 Categories: , , , , Tags: ,
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