Ferdinand Leeke, (1859–1937)
The Mermaid and the Satyr, c. 1917
Oil on canvas
39 x 53.1 in. / 99 x 135 cm
Private collection
A mermaid is a marine creature with the head and upper body of a female human and the tail of a fish. Mermaids appear in the folklore of many cultures worldwide. The first stories appeared in ancient Assyria. Mermaids can be benevolent or beneficent.
In Greek mythology, a satyr is the member of a troop of ithyphallic male companions of Dionysus; they usually have horse-like ears and tails, as well as permanent, exaggerated erections. Early artistic representations sometimes include horse-like legs, but, in 6th-century BC black-figure pottery, human legs are the most common. The faun is a similar woodland-dwelling creature from Roman mythology, which had the body of a man, but the legs, horns, and tail of a goat. In myths, both are often associated with pipe-playing. Greek-speaking Romans often used the Greek term saturos when referring to the Latin faunus, and eventually syncretized the two (the female “Satyresses” were a later invention of poets). They are also known for their focus on sexual desires. They were characterized by the desire to have sexual intercourse with as many women as possible, known as satyriasis. More on satyr
Ferdinand Leeke (April 7, 1859 – 1923) was a German Painter, famous for his depictions of scenes from Wagnerian Operas. A native of Burg bei Magdeburg, Germany, he studied at the Munich Academy under Johann Herterich (1843-1905), a genre and historical painter, and with Alexander von Wagner (1838-1919), a Hungarian genre and landscape painter. More on Ferdinand Leeke.
Please visit my other blogs: Art Collector, Mythology, Marine Art, and The Canals of Venice
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