Dish with Satyr & Nymph

3D Image

by Geoffrey Marchal
published on 17 November 2019

This dish, decorated in high relief, had to have a decorative or votive function, because it is not usable. Red marks indicate that it was painted or golden. The central décor is reminiscent of ancient mirror box lids, while the framing patterns are similar to metal tableware.

The central scene depicts a satyr identified by pointed ears and quill, and Aphrodite or a nymph at her toilet. Behind the female figure is a water vase, an open mirror and a garment. Placed against the legs of the satyr, a hunting stick (lagobolon). The perimeter is decorated with a band of egg-and-dart designs outside, and ox-skulls between rosettes inside.

Decorative dish, 3rd or 2nd Century BCE, Tarantine (?) production, comes from Argos in Acarnania. Museum of Art History (Musée du Cinquantenaire), Brussels, Belgium. Made with CapturingReality.