Fragment of Dionysus

myminifactory

Who is depicted? Dionysus, the god of grape harvest, winemaking and wine, ritual madness, fertility, theatre, and religious ecstasy, is depicted as a bearded, robed male figure holding a fennel staff with a pine-cone tip. He is often shown in various forms, including a mature male, beardless androgynous youth, or a naked half-naked figure, symbolizing his chaotic and unpredictable nature. His festivals drive the development of Greek theatre, and his followers, the maenads and satyrs, are wild and frenzied. The god himself is drawn in a chariot by exotic beasts like lions or tigers, accompanied by Silenus, a bearded, drunken companion. This procession represents the cult model for the followers of his Dionysian Mysteries. Dionysus protects those who don't belong to conventional society and symbolizes the chaotic, unpredictable forces that defy human reason. He is also known as Bacchus, the name adopted by the Romans, and induces frenzy in his followers through wine, music, and ecstatic dance. His cult is a "cult of the souls," where maenads feed the dead through blood-offerings, and he acts as a divine communicator between the living and the dead. In Greek mythology, Dionysus is presented as a son of Zeus and Semele, making him semi-divine or heroic. The artist who created this depiction is unknown but was likely inspired by Praxiteles, a renowned sculptor from Athens in the 4th century BC. Praxiteles was known for his life-size nude female statues and had numerous works attributed to him through copies and written accounts. His relationship with Phryne, a beautiful courtesan, has been the subject of speculation and artistic interpretation. Some writers suggest that there may have been two sculptors named Praxiteles, but this remains uncertain.