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Announcer: This is a Getty

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podcast.

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Host: Signed, sealed,
delivered—today a special gem

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shares some important news!

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Welcome to If Objects Could
Talk, a podcast where art

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and artifacts get to leave
the museum vault and tell

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their side of the story.

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Thanks for joining us as we
bring objects into the light!

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How would your best
friend describe you?

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Are you responsible?

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A party animal?

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Maybe a little bit of both?

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Well today we meet a satyr
who is half man, half

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goat, and all storyteller.

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Satyrs are mythical woodland
creatures known for their love

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of parties—and for playing the
occasional trick on people.

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Our guest might love a good
time, but he can be serious

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when he needs to be, because
he had an important job

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to do: sealing letters and
official documents in wax.

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Before tape or that weird
envelope glue you have to

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lick, wax and seals kept
private papers private.

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OK, enough background, let's
get this podcast party started!

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Satyr: Whoa, dudes,
most excellent to make

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your acquaintance.

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It’s a really big
deal to be here.

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No one ever lets me talk.

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Apparently, I have
a gnarly accent.

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I’ll need to be done in like
ten because it’s my turn

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to DJ, and I can finally
play some sweet oldies.

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Speaking of oldies,
let's talk about me!

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I’m carved into an
oval-shaped gemstone, over

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two thousand years old.

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I’m made of cornelian which
is a type of red-orange

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gem or maybe orange-red?

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Anyway, my gem is about
the size of a small

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button on a fancy shirt.

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One side of the gemstone is me!

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I’m a Satyr, which is
absolutely so sick.

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I’ve got the head and torso
of a dude, but the legs of

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a goat and the ears, tail,
and horns of a goat, too!

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Ha-ha nice!

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Gimmie five man.

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I think the gem engraver
got my good side.

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I’m doing this cool satyr
dance called sikinnis.

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I’m just kinda prancing
around like a goat.

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Satyrs are nature spirits
known for having a good time,

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so it absolutely checks out
that I’d be busting a move.

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The scene of me dancing is
framed by a dotted border

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which is a nice touch.

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But wait!

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There’s more!

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On my opposite side,
the gemstone is shaped

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like a scarab beetle.

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Say “what's up?”, beetle buddy!

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Scarab: [buzzing] How do you do?

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Satyr: Bro!

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I love that guy!

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Scarabs represent protection,
which I need, because sometimes

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I like to have a little too
much fun playing tricks, and my

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little beetle buddy is always
coming in clutch with the assist

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before I land in hot water...or
should I say hot wax?!

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Right, dude?

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Scarab: Indubitably.

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Satyr: Aw, was that a sneeze?

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Bless you, beetle buddy!

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Me and the scarab weren't
just created to look

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good—which would be totally
fair—we also had a job.

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We had to seal important
messages so that A: recipients

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knew the messages were from
a specific person and 2: the

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message was secure like a vault!

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If the seal was broken, you’d
know someone had peeked inside!

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Totally bogus.

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Because the scarab was the
protection side, he was the

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one worn facing out on a ring.

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When a message or document
needed to be sealed,

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the gem flipped, and
the engraved side—me—was

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stamped in the hot wax.

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I didn’t like that part, dude.

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Not cool, very hot actually!

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Yep, that’s probably why I’m
leaping and twirling, because

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I’m doing my “too hot” dance!

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Yeah, I’ve been in Cali for
awhile, but I'm originally

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from Etruria, a pre-Roman
civilization from around the

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areas where Tuscany is today.

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Geographically, it’s the
top of the Italian boot

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and dooooooown the middle.

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[laughs] The Etruscans
were so awesome.

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Lots things you love
about the Romans?

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They got it from the Etruscans.

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Gladiator games!

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Togas!

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Divination using animal organs!

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The Etruscans did it first.

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Yeah, even that!

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The military celebration
after a triumph in battle

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is soooooo Etruscan, dude.

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We may have been first in those
things, but everybody borrows

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from everybody, especially if
you’re on a trade route like

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many parts of Etruria were.

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My little beetle buddy?

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Totally Egyptian, dude.

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Yep, brought to Etruria by way
of the Greeks and Phoenicians.

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Hey, I’ve got a great idea!

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Let’s talk about
how we were made!

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Oh, it’s so sick, bro.

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Check this out:

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First a gem was selected
and cut into a small shape.

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The Etruscans liked cornelian
because it’s gorgeous and

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it didn’t stick to the hot
wax when sealing a document.

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They used teeny tiny drills—like
hand-powered ones, not electric

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or battery powered like
you might have at home—and

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dipped them into a mixture
of olive oil and powder

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made from even harder gems.

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This let the craftsmen carve
the stone in the finest detail.

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The carving on the underside of
the gemstone, which would rest

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against the body, was called
an intaglio, or sunken image.

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These scenes were usually
mythological heroes

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or creatures like me!

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Scarab gemstones could
be unique to the wearer

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and would highlight a
family’s name or specific

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characteristics of the owner.

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My guy was a party
animal, so that tracks!

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I'm curious, if you wrote a
message to someone, and you

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didn’t use your name on the
paper, how would they, like,

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know the message was from you?

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What would your seal be?

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Maybe a mermaid because
you love to swim?

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Or a cookie because
you could eat those for

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breakfast, lunch, and dinner?

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Whoa, let's just take
a second to think about

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all the possibilities.

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Now, can you draw your new seal?

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Then you can write a letter
to a friend or family member

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telling them about your seal
and why it represents you.

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Speaking of being yourself,
let me tell you about

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Velia and her Uncle Nico.

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Now, Nico knew how
to have a good time.

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He was the life of the
party, dude, like me!

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Nico was the proud uncle
of a lovely niece, Velia.

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She was the ambitious,
hardworking type.

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Velia hoped to be a model
Etruscan woman when she

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grew up—maybe buy some
property, head up her own

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family, and even speak loudly
at the occasional party.

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Those Etruscan women
could be powerful, dude!

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For Velia’s twelfth birthday,
all she really wanted was

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for her uncle to do an honest
day’s work...and a donkey.

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They could use one
on their family farm.

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But she didn’t want
just any donkey.

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She wanted a donkey that she
had seen a few months ago

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when traveling for a wedding.

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The donkey lived nearly
half a day’s journey away!

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She made her birthday request
complicated on purpose, bro!

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She tasked Uncle Nico with
getting her the donkey, and with

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her parents’ permission, she
planned on making the trip, too.

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Several days later, and armed
with a bill of exchange sealed

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by yours truly, Velia and
Uncle Nico set off to get that

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beast of burden in exchange
for two old, fluffy sheep.

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Me and Beetle Buddy
went with them.

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Etruscans traded between
cities all the time so we just

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followed the Etruscan road!

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Velia was like, so impressed
with her Uncle for being willing

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to make this birthday trip.

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He regaled her with tales of
the cities he had traveled

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to, and she taught him
that it was probably not a

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good idea to eat just any
berry he found on a bush.

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Half-way through, they
were ready for a rest stop.

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So they moved off the road
and snacked on the figs

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and olives they’d brought.

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Your classic ancient
road trip snacks.

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Then Uncle

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Nico daydreamed a while.

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Velia took a little
nap and dream-dreamed.

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Peaceful, you know?

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But, it wouldn't be a good
story if there wasn't a

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little bit of drama right?

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So I decided to play a
little game of hide the

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sheep and encouraged one to
go for a little walkabout.

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[laughs] It was going to
be so funny to see them

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looking for that fluffy guy!

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I love a harmless
prank on the open road!

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Velia woke up and noticed
that they were down a

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sheep, and boy was she mad!

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She totally blamed her uncle
who could have easily watched

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the clouds and the sheep!

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With one sheep, one uncle,
and one dashing satyr-scarab

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duo, Velia led the charge
to find the missing sheep.

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At the edge of the clearing
where they had been resting

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was a deep, dark forest.

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With the lost sheep nowhere
in sight, Velia, true Etrsucan

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leader that she was, figured it
was time to check the forest.

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Velia and Uncle Nico were deep
into their search when all of

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a sudden we heard rustling.

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00:11:05,789 --> 00:11:08,670
We all got pretty excited
because we figured it was that

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fluffy sheep and we could grab
him and laugh at my funny trick.

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00:11:13,820 --> 00:11:15,360
Not so, my dudes.

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It was a wild boar.

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00:11:19,300 --> 00:11:20,840
A big one!

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00:11:21,380 --> 00:11:25,290
The boar stared at us
and we stared at him.

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00:11:25,620 --> 00:11:29,180
The boar charged and
Uncle Nico and Velia ran

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00:11:29,340 --> 00:11:30,680
as fast as they could.

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00:11:31,390 --> 00:11:34,800
As they neared the forest’s
edge, Velia grabbed Uncle Nico's

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00:11:34,840 --> 00:11:38,169
hand and pointed at the steep
rocks ahead past the clearing.

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They just had to
reach higher ground!

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00:11:42,139 --> 00:11:44,660
Boars are notoriously
bad rock climbers.

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00:11:45,080 --> 00:11:47,890
Once they made it to the
rocks, Uncle Nico climbed

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up first and then yanked up
Velia by the arm, but the

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00:11:51,120 --> 00:11:54,230
boar was still right there at
the bottom waiting for them!

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00:11:55,030 --> 00:11:58,650
Nico thought fast and threw
down his figs and a sliver

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00:11:58,650 --> 00:12:01,349
of Velia's birthday honey
cake he’d been saving.

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00:12:01,550 --> 00:12:06,210
The boar devoured them
in seconds and then left!

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00:12:08,230 --> 00:12:10,959
It’s like all it wanted
was a little treat!

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00:12:11,360 --> 00:12:11,630
Insane!

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00:12:12,009 --> 00:12:12,229
Velia

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00:12:16,100 --> 00:12:18,490
looked at her Uncle
differently from then on.

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00:12:18,930 --> 00:12:21,959
He wasn’t just a cool, if
somewhat irresponsible,

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00:12:21,960 --> 00:12:22,949
party animal.

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00:12:23,250 --> 00:12:26,880
He was the guy who stayed
calm in a crisis and

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could think on his feet.

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And he was also the Uncle
willing to make sure

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she got exactly what she
wanted for her birthday.

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At this point, all she
wanted was to go home.

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They could check out the
donkeys in the neighborhood.

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00:12:42,120 --> 00:12:44,810
Oh, you wanna know what
happened to the lost sheep?

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Ha, dude!

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00:12:46,420 --> 00:12:49,890
From the rock formation they
spotted him easily, on the other

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00:12:49,890 --> 00:12:52,280
side of the rock fast asleep.

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00:12:57,100 --> 00:13:00,260
So much for my “harmless
prank,” right? We never even

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00:13:00,320 --> 00:13:04,670
had to go into that forest!
I did feel bad, but I learned

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00:13:04,670 --> 00:13:07,950
a valuable lesson: don’t
play hide the sheep on a

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00:13:07,960 --> 00:13:09,889
business slash birthday trip!

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00:13:10,879 --> 00:13:14,600
Well hey, this has been
totally chill, but it’s

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00:13:14,600 --> 00:13:16,140
time to play my set, dude.

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00:13:16,740 --> 00:13:19,220
Maybe next time you can
come sit in on a sesh.

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00:13:19,640 --> 00:13:20,220
Later!

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00:13:28,340 --> 00:13:31,130
Host: I hope you enjoyed
learning about satyrs and

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00:13:33,650 --> 00:13:33,670
Etruria!

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00:13:33,670 --> 00:13:37,280
Join us next time when a
horse unlocks a mystery.

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00:13:38,540 --> 00:13:41,530
To see photographs of the
satyr gem and learn more,

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00:13:41,590 --> 00:13:46,449
visit our website at Getty
dot edu slash podcasts.

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00:13:47,520 --> 00:13:50,180
This episode was written
by Tocarra Elise and

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00:13:50,180 --> 00:13:51,750
produced by Zoe Goldman.

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00:13:52,170 --> 00:13:54,590
Isaac Robinson-Smith
voiced the satyr.

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Theme music, mixing and sound
design by Alexandra Kalinowski.

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Christopher Sprinkle
is executive producer.

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Special thanks to curators
Ken Lapatin, Judith

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Barr, and Hana Sugioka.

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Catch you next time!