Young Centaur

Maker Fonderia Chiurazzi (Italian, founded 1870)

Dateearly 20th century

MediumBronze

Dimensions64 x 26 x 46 1/2 in. (162.6 x 66 x 118.1 cm)

ClassificationsSculpture

Credit LineBequest of John Ringling, 1936

Object numberSN5037

Centaurs are creatures from Greek mythology with the upper body of a man and the lower half of a horse. They appear throughout Greek and Roman art, often as hunters. This statue is one of a pair of centaurs, one young, the other old, unearthed at the villa of the Roman Emperor Hadrian (ruled 117-138 AD) in 1736. Originally, on the back of each centaur would have sat the Greek god of love and desire, Eros, whose presence produces two diverging reactions: the young centaur gallops freely and snaps his fingers in delight, while the older has his hands tied behind him, his passion hindered by age.

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