According to the Clark Institute, in the painting "a group of nymphs have been surprised, while bathing in a secluded pond, by a lascivious satyr. Some of the nymphs have retreated into the shadows on the right; others, braver than their friends, are trying to dampen the satyr's ardor by pulling him into the cold water -- one of the satyr's hooves is already wet and he clearly wants to go no further. Bouguereau’s working methods were traditional; he made a number of sketches and drawings of carefully posed human figures in complicated interconnected poses, linking them together in this wonderfully rhythmical composition."[2][3]
In the exhibition of 1873 it was displayed along with a verse from the ancient Roman poet, Publius Statius: “Conscious of his shaggy hide and from childhood untaught to swim, he dares not trust himself to deep waters.”[4]
The painting, the largest and one of the most beloved of the Clark collection, was cleaned prior to March 10, 2012 with the help of a grant from the Parnassus Foundation, courtesy of Jane and Raphael Bernstein.[