Capri – sirenernas ö?

Capri is sometimes called the ‘island of the sirens’. Even in antiquity, the island’s dramatic cliffs were associated with the creatures whose song lured sailors to their doom. Homer never says what the sirens looked like.

In early Greek art, they were depicted as women, and sometimes men, with birds’ bodies. In Roman sculpture, they were portrayed as women making music, and during the Middle Ages they were believed to be mermaids.

This evening’s lecture explores how sirens have evolved in art and literature from antiquity to the present day.

Allan Klynne, PhD in Classical Archaeology and Ancient History, author and lecturer.