Satyr Resting beneath a Herm

Giovanni Benedetto Castiglione, 1645–47

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This long, low etching shows revelers getting their strength back after a bacchanal. A satyr settles on the steps below a stout herm, probably a figure of the god Pan, while the goats on the right lift their heads toward the statue as if waiting for orders. Castiglione’s quick, looping lines suggest the trees and sky with very little detail.

Etching on paper · Sheet: 11.8 × 21.3 cm · Art Institute of Chicago · Baroque

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Art Institute of Chicago: Satyr Resting beneath a Herm

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Details and source

Museum title: Satyr Resting beneath a Herm
Artist: Giovanni Benedetto Castiglione Italian, 1609-1664
Date: 1645–47
Medium: Etching on paper
Dimensions: Sheet: 11.8 × 21.3 cm (4 11/16 × 8 7/16 in.)
Credit line: Harold Joachim Purchase Fund
Image license: CC0 1.0 · Public domain
Museum record: Art Institute of Chicago

Artist’s life 1609–1664

Baroque c. 1600–1750

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Galler’s rooms and hanging scale are imagined. The image is the museum’s original digital reproduction.