Pan lærer fugl at synge

På hjørnet af Kongevejen og Havreballe Skovvej står skulpturen Skovguden Pan lavet af billedhuggeren Elias Rasmussen Ølsgaard.

Skulpturen er fra 1933 og var oprindeligt udstillet i Kunsthal Charlottenborg Kunsthal. Den er opstillet på sin nuværende placering i 1938.

Pan stammer fra den græske mytologi. Han er halvt menneske og halvt dyr og forbindes ofte med en fløjte - deraf panfløjten.

Myten er, at Pan i sin jag på nymfen Syrinx får drevet hende til at gemme sig som siv ved floden Ladon, som Pan derefter anvender til at lave fløjten. Pan-figuren tillægges ofte erotiske og drilagtige undertoner. 

Elias Ølsgaard er ud over at være ophavsmand til rigtig mange skulpturer rundt i hele Aarhus også lidt af en Kongelunds-kunstner. Han har også udformet 'Skovnymfe med frø' i Forstbotanisk Have, et relief af Ole Rømer inde i Ole Rømer Observatoriets foyer samt loftsudsmykningen i stuerne på Marselisborg Slot.

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On the corner of Kongevejen and Havreballe Skovvej stands the sculpture The Forest God Pan by sculptor Elias Rasmussen Ølsgaard.

The sculpture dates from 1933 and was originally exhibited at Charlottenborg Art Gallery. It was installed in its current location in 1938.

Pan comes from Greek mythology. He is half human and half animal and is often associated with a flute – hence the pan flute.

According to the myth, Pan, in his pursuit of the nymph Syrinx, drives her to hide by transforming into reeds by the river Ladon. Pan then uses these reeds to make his flute. The figure of Pan is often attributed with erotic and mischievous undertones.

In addition to having created many sculptures throughout Aarhus, Elias Ølsgaard can also be considered something of a Kongelunden artist. He also made Forest Nymph with Frog in the Botanical Forest Garden, a relief of Ole Rømer in the foyer of the Ole Rømer Observatory, and the ceiling decorations in the rooms at Marselisborg Palace.