"Much of what we know today about ancient Roman life comes from the ruins of Pompeii after the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79 AD. Major archeological digs of the site didn’t begin until the mid-18th century, and although there were many things lost to looting and decay, there was a surprising amount of artifacts retrieved from the ash. One of these artifacts was a sculpture known today as “Satyr and Hermaphrodite”, a marble statue depicting a satyr and Hermaphrodite, an intersex child of Hermes and Aphrodite, in the middle of an altercation. Satyrs represented the animalistic side of human nature. Coupled with the fact that they were often used as symbols of sexuality and aggression, it is assumed that this is a scene of Hermaphrodite fighting off assault. Artist Stacy Jo Scott was inspired by this work, citing it as a moment of recognition. As a Queer person, she found herself empathizing with Hermaphrodite and was inspired by their fight against the violence imposed onto them. Scott honors this relationship with Hermaphrodite in their series of the same title, depicting struggling and disjointed body parts and freedom in the form of kaleidoscopic, abstract forms."