The Dancing Faun of Pompeii

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The Dancing Faun burst onto the scene on October 26, 1830 amidst the ruins of Pompeii's most lavish Roman abode: the House of the Faun, a discovery that would later be crowned with the name it bore. This opulent home also housed the renowned Alexander Mosaic, and The Faun is speculated to either be an authentic Greek piece from the 2nd century or an exceptionally crafted Roman replica. As soon as its presence was revealed, Francis Haskell and Nicholas Penny wrote in Taste and the Antique that "the fame of this small bronze spread instantly ... its first cataloger hailed it as the finest bronze unearthed at Pompeii and likened it to the Barberini Faun." Its petite stature made it an ideal candidate for replication and adorning gardens and drawing rooms. Victorians fell head over heels in love with The Faun, undoubtedly buoyed by affirmations like that from the Naples museum, which confidently stated that "The Faun was ecstatic and not in the intoxicated condition of various other bronze Fauns from Herculaneum and Pompeii…"