The Triumph of Silenus, Gerard van Opstal, ca. 1660

Silver tetradrachm of the polis of Naxos (Sicily).  On the obverse, a bearded head of Dionysus, wearing an ivy wreath; on the reverse, a squatting, nude Silenus holding a drinking-cup and thyrsus.  Artist unknown; ca. 430-425 BCE.  Photo credit: Exekias/Wikimedia Commons.

Silenus speaks to a woman.  Fragment of an Apulian krater in the Gnathian style, artist unknown; ca. 360-340 BCE.  Now in the Metropolitan Museum of Art.  Photo credit: Marie-Lan Nguyen/Wikimedia Commons.

Ancient Roman bronze bust of Silenus, used as an attachment for a couch.  Artist unknown; 1st or early 2nd cent. CE.  Now in the Cleveland Museum of Art.

Silenus or a satyr, holding a kantharos (drinking-cup) and lyre.  Tondo of an Attic red-figure kylix, attributed to the Clinic Painter; ca. 475-425 BCE.  Found at Vulci; now in the Cabinet des Médailles, Paris.

Silver tetradrachm from the city of Naxos, Sicily.  On the obverse, a bearded head of Dionysus; on the reverse, a nude, squatting Silenus with a kantharos (two-handled drinking cup) and thyrsos (staff of the worshippers of Dionysus), alongside the inscription ΝΑΞΙΩΝ (”Of the Naxians”).  Artist unknown; ca. 425 BCE.  Photo credit: Exekias/Wikimedia Commons.

Silenus (or a satyr) with a billy goat.  Side A of an Attic black-figure kyathos, artist unknown; ca. 520 BCE.  Now in the Metropolitan Museum of Art.  Photo credit: Marie-Lan Nguyen/Wikimedia Commons.

Silver drachm of the Sicilian city of Naxos.  Obverse: bearded head of Dionysus, with an ivy wreath; reverse: a drunken, naked Silenus.  Ca. 461-430 BCE.  Photo credit: Exekias/Wikimedia Commons.

Hermaphroditus, flanked by Silenus and a Maenad.  Fresco from the triclinium of the procurator in the Casa del Centenario, Pompeii.

Askos with the head of Silenus, found at Marseilles (ancient Massilia).  Artist unknown; late 6th cent. BCE.  Now in the Musée d'histoire de Marseille.  Photo credit: Rvalette.

A drunken Silenus.  Mosaic from the House of Paquius Proculus, Pompeii; now in the National Archaeological Museum, Naples.

Dionysus, flanked by sileni (or satyrs).  Interior of an Attic red-figure cup, attributed to the Brygos Painter; ca. 480 BCE.  Now in the Cabinet des Médailles, Paris.

Silenus.  Attic red-figure skyphos, early 5th cent. BCE; artist unknown.  Now in the Los Angeles County Museum of Art.

To Silenus, Attendant of Dionysus

Orphic Hymn 54, “To Silenus, Satyrus, and the Bacchae” (author unknown; date perhaps 200-250 CE) Hear me, o most reverend foster-father, nursemaid of Bacchus, Much the best of the Silenoi, you who are honored by all the gods And by mortal men when the season comes around every three years; You are worshipped with holy rites, you are majestic, You lead the rites of the pastoral throng as you cry “Euhoe!”, You love to stay awake through the night with Bacchus’ well-girdled nurses, You lead the Naiads and the ivy-bearing Bacchae. Come hither, to the rite held for all the gods; come, Together with all the Satyrs shaped like beasts; Give a cry for the lord Bacchus as you escort, along with the Bacchae, The august Lenaia-procession that brings fulfillment; Reveal with your holy rites the mystic ceremonies that shine forth in the night- Cry “Euhoe!”, o thyrsus-lover, as you attain calm amidst the reveling. Κλῦθί μου, ὦ πολύσεμνε τροφεῦ, Βάκχοιο τιθηνέ, Σιληνῶν ὄχ’ ἄριστε, τετιμένε πᾶσι θεοῖσι καὶ θνητοῖσι βροτοῖσιν ἐπὶ τριετηρίσιν ὥραις, ἁγνοτελής, γεραρός, θιάσου νομίου τελετάρχα, εὐαστής, φιλάγρυπνε σὺν εὐζώνοισι τιθήναις, Ναΐσι καὶ Βάκχαις ἡγούμενε κισσοφόροισι· δεῦρ’ ἐπὶ πάνθειον τελετὴν Σατύροις ἅμα πᾶσι θηροτύποις, εὔασμα διδοὺς Βακχείου ἄνακτος, σὺν Βάκχαις Λήναια τελεσφόρα σεμνὰ προπέμπων, ὄργια νυκτιφαῆ τελεταῖς ἁγίαις ἀναφαίνων, εὐάζων, φιλόθυρσε, γαληνιόων θιάσοισιν.

Silenus and Bacchantes, Jacob Jordaens, 1st half of 17th century