Der schlaffe Thyrsos. Zur Plinthe des Farnesischen Stiers und zur Frage der expliziten künstlerischen Selbstreferenz in kaiserzeitlichen Marmorbildwerken

Abstract

The colossal sculpture group of the ›Farnese Bull‹ that once decorated the baths of Caracalla includes not only the main figures of its mythological subject, the punishment of Dirce, but also many other pictorial elements on its plinth: In terms of content, they help to illustrate the scenery in which the action takes place or serve as attributes of the main characters. Particularly noteworthy is a thyrsus lying on the ground next to Dirce whose shaft contrary to its conventional iconography is bent twice. Apparently, the common attribute of the Dionysian sphere does not seem to be intact here; and all the more so, as one end droops in a slack manner from the edge of the rocky plinth. This peculiar constellation, for which close parallels do not seem to exist, forms the starting point of this article. The question of interpretation will be approached from different angles, on the one hand by discussing the motif with regard to the depicted situation and the metaphorical characterisation of Dirce respectively, on the other hand by focussing on the exceptionally high artistic aspiration and the technical skill of the sculpture group as a topic in its own right.