Satyr's head, XIX century.

Satyr head, XIX century.
Granite.
Mounted with metal structure.
Measurements: 27 x 20 x 14 cm; 34,5 cm (height, overall).

This expressive satyr's head is part of the neoclassical and romantic tradition of recovering motifs from classical antiquity.

The piece stands out for its vigorous and caricatured character: the facial features, with marked gestures, are articulated in a grimace between mocking and grotesque, accentuated by the wide smile and the marked expression of the eyes. The horns, which emerge strongly on both sides of the forehead, reinforce the mythological identification of the character.

The use of granite, a material of great hardness, gives the sculpture a solid and archaizing presence, evoking ancient models, although reinterpreted with a freer and more expressive nineteenth-century sensibility.

Far from an archaeological reproduction, the work responds to a taste for the fantastic and decorative, widespread in the nineteenth century in areas such as architectural ornamentation or historicist gardens.