Apollo Stares Down at Marsyas
Challenging the Cosmic Order
Marsyas, a mere mortal, played a wind instrument, and challenged Apollo to a musical contest as to whether he played his instrument better than Apollo played his lyre. Since the Muses were the judges they naturally gave the prize to their chorus- leader from whom they had learned everything, Apollo. Apollo then promptly flayed Marsyas for his presumption. In this Renaissance painting by Perugino, Marsyas has no goat-features, and may be a faun, not a satyr. While both are half-animal, half- human, Satyrs are wild bearded drunks and rapists, fauns are shy adolescent boys. Over time the Greek myths, as reinterpreted in Rome and the Italian Renaissance, took on many other fascinating interpretations. Perugino meant the serene Apollo here to be the Sun, presiding over order of the heavenly bodies, and he flayed Marsyas for challenging the cosmic order.
