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- Description
- He must not be seen! I will cover his body, I will wrap him completely in my mantle. No one who loved him could bear to see the dark blood pouring from his nostrils and the raw wound in his breast. So declared Tekmessa when she discovered the body of her dead lover Ajax in an Athenian tragedy by the playwright Sophokles. Ajax was one of the greatest of the Greek heroes in the Trojan War. The matter of his suicide was recounted in epic poetry now lost to us, but Athenian vase-painters in the early 400s B.C. frequently drew on this tradition in showing his death. The interior of this red-figure cup attributed to the Brygos Painter shows Ajax impaled on his sword and Tekmessa running to cover the body. In a unique representation of the suicide, the sword enters through his back rather than the more natural position through the stomach. Beneath Ajax, the Brygos Painter attempted to convey the texture of the pebble beach where Ajax went to die. The exterior of the cup presents the events leading to Ajax's suicide. When Achilles was killed, Ajax saved his body from the Trojans, expecting to be rewarded with Achilles' armor. However, Odysseus also claimed the armor. One side of this cup shows the two heroes quarreling; on the other side, the Greek leaders cast votes in the form of stones piled in front of the opponents. The despondent Ajax clutches his bowed head, having lost by one vote. --J. Paul Getty Museum; Bareiss Loan Number: S.82.AE.27
- Description
- Pottery: red-figured cup. Description INTERIOR: man leading a woman (Odysseus and Briseis?). On the left a young woman, head lowered, is being led to the right. She wears a chiton and a himation (horizontal battlement border, dilute glaze vertical band, rows of dilute glaze dots) which is pulled up over the back of her head. She has a disc earring and a stephane with a row of sigmas. Her hair has a wash of dilute glaze and one long curly tress falls down behind her ear. Her mouth is slightly open and she must be exchanging words with the bearded man on the right, who similarly has his mouth open. Dressed in short chiton (dilute glaze folds), himation (rows of dots; battlement upper border) and petasos with red ties, he moves to the right, but turns his head back to look at the girl whom he leads, gripping her left wrist and hand in his right. He holds a spear in his left hand across his body, so that the point is above her head. There is dilute shading on his petasos at the top and above the beginning of the brim. His hair and beard are done with a dilute glaze wash and there are rows of dilute glaze dots on his neck. Border: stopt maeander (five-stroke, anticlockwise). EXTERIOR: the Arms of Achilles. Side A (upper): quarrel over the arms of Achilles. On the far left a male in dotted chlamys holds the right arm of the figure in front of him (his head and part of his draped lower torso are missing). In front is a bearded man, probably Ajax, in boots (dilute glaze wash) with horizontal rolls and red ties and a dotted himation with a black border loosely draped over his arms, who attempts to move forward to the right. He holds a sword back in his right hand and a striped scabbard in his left. His pectorals and mid-line are enhanced with dilute glaze to indicate hair. A youth tries to push him back to the left. He has a chlamys with rows of dots in dilute glaze over his upper arms and turns his head back to the right. His hair is painted with dilute glaze. In the centre is a man in a long chiton (folds in dilute glaze) and a dotted himation with a battlement upper border; he is presumably Agamemnon. He moves to the left, but his arms are outstretched to left and right; his head, which is missing, was turned to the right, as the red ties from his headband on the left indicate. On the right a youth pushes to the right at a bearded man. The youth has a himation (black border, rows of dots) loosely draped over his shoulders; his hair is combed up in plait over his neck and he has a double red hair-band. The bearded man, probably Odysseus, in front of him endeavours to move to the left. In the struggle his himation (black border, rows of dots) has slipped from his right shoulder; he has just drawn his sword from its striped scabbard, which he holds in his left hand (hand and top of scabbard missing). He wears boots like those worn by Ajax: rolls above the ankles, red ties and dilute wash. His pectorals and mid-line are enhanced with dilute glaze to indicate hair and his lips are slightly parted. On the far right a bearded man moves to the left, a dotted himation (black border) over his shoulders, his right hand gripping the left shoulder of the man in front, his left hand probably the man's left wrist (both missing). His hair is combed up into a stiff fringe and his pectorals and mid-line are enhanced with dilute glaze to indicate hair. Side Β (lower): the vote for the arms of Achilles. On the far left stands Odysseus, dressed in a dotted himation with a battlement border (all the himatia on this side have such a border) and shoes. He leans on a knotty stick, his right hand on his hip under the drapery, his left hand up in front of his chest. His pectorals and mid-line are enhanced with dilute glaze to indicate hair. His mouth is open and he has a red apicate fillet. In front of him stands a youth, dressed in a himation with rows of dots and leaning on a knotty stick. He reaches down to the right with his right hand to place his pebble (not shown) on the plain block (dilute wash) in the centre. His hair is tied up in a plait over his neck and he has a double red fillet. His left hand is to be thought of as on top of his stick, near his right armpit. In front of him stands Athena who wears a chiton, himation, scaly snake-fringed aegis (dilute wash inside) and Attic helmet (dilute wash for caul; black neck-guard). She holds a spear upright in her right hand and gestures with her left hand. Her head (hair done with dilute wash) is turned to the right, but her right knee is bent and the leg is to be thought of as facing to the left. Her lower legs are obscured by the corner of the block. On the corner in front of the folds of her chiton are two rows of black pebbles, totalling twenty. In the centre stands a bearded man to the left, wearing a dotted himation and a red fillet. He twists his right shoulder in order to place a pebble (not shown) on the block which hides his lower legs. His left hand is on a knotty stick, which goes under his left armpit (lower part of stick not drawn). At the right corner of the block stands a youth in a himation with rows of dots and double red hair-band leaning back on a knotty stick. He also holds his right hand down to cast his vote. On the corner of the block in front of the folds of his himation are two rows of black pebbles, totalling eleven. On the right a bearded man in a dotted himation and shoes moves forward to the left to vote, but turns his head back to the right. He holds a knotty stick in his left hand across his body and holds his right hand out to vote (pebble not shown). He has a reserved head-band. On the far right stands Ajax, his dotted himation with its battlement border framing his head. He leans on a knotty stick (with groups of horizontal lines in dilute glaze on it), his head lowered in despair, his right hand to his forehead. He wears a red fillet. Under handles: B/A, Corinthian helmet (dilute glaze on cheek-piece; black on neck-piece; dilute glaze wash for fur frontiet; chequer-board pattern on caul) on top of a shield (dilute glaze hatching before rim); A/B, pair of greaves (dilute glaze wash, elaborate modelling around knee-caps and a scroll on the calf, red ties above). Ground line: two reserved lines. Relief line contour throughout (except hair); dilute glaze for minor interior markings; thick reserved line inside lip, thin outside. --The British Museum, Williams, Dyfri, Corpus Vasorum Antiquorum: Great Britain 17, British Museum 9, London, BMP, 1993; A Catalogue of the Greek and Etruscan Vases in the British Museum, London, William Nicol, 1851; Walters, H B; Forsdyke, E J; Smith, C H, Catalogue of Vases in the British Museum, I-IV, London, BMP, 1893
44. Banquet Scene
- Description
- Pottery: red-figured kylix (drinking-cup). INTERIOR: Warrior and girl. On the left a warrior sits on a stool with fringed cushion decorated with rows of dots and rows of two-tailed blobs. He is dressed in short chiton (dilute glaze folds on shoulder), dotted himation (battlement upper border, black lower border), cuirass, Corinthian helmet and red greave-pads (upper band crenellated, lower plain). His hair and beard are done with dilute glaze; a long curl falls down over his shoulder. He holds a spear upright in his left hand (a group of dilute glaze lines on upper shaft; point breaks the border pattern) and holds out a bossed phiale in his right. The bosses are done with raised clay and then gilded by using red miltos as a bole. His mouth is open and his name is written as if issuing from it: +PVΣΙΠΠΟΣ. On the right stands a girl in chiton (folds of second overfold and sleeve done in dilute glaze; ends of red girdle show over her right knee) and himation. Her blond hair (done with dilute glaze) is tied up at the back with a double reserved cord with three tassels that fall on her shoulder and a hair slide or clip. She supports the rim of a black shield (reserved line at joint with rim) with her left hand and holds up a dipper with a long handle that terminates in a very schematic duck's head: she is about to pour wine into the warrior's phiale. Over her back is written her name: IEVXΣO. Her disc earring is done with raised clay and was gilded, like the phiale. Border: dotted saltire cross (blobs at ends of arms) alternating with three units of stopt maeander (five- to six-stroke, anticlockwise: reversed behind helmet crest and woman's head, and only two units at two o'clock). EXTERIOR: satyrs threaten Hera and Iris. Side A: Hera threatened by satyrs. Creeping out from under the handle root on the extreme left is a satyr, named ΤΕΡΠΟΝ. His left knee is almost on the ground, his right is doubled up under him; both hands are on the ground. Like all the other satyrs on the cup, he has his mouth slightly open, his hairline is receding, he has an erection and he wears a red wreath of ivy leaves. In addition, however, his long hair falls down in curls over his back. Almost alongside him walks another satyr, named BABAK+OΣ. His fists are clenched (the preliminary sketch shows that the left arm was originally raised by c. 90 degrees). In front of him is a third satyr, named HVAPIEI: (the first letter is cramped and may be a mistake for K), who moves forward, but the way he spreads his hands suggests he may be hesitating (his erection is obscured by the tail of the next satyr). In the centre is a fourth satyr, named ΣTVON, who stoops as he moves forward. He is almost in three-quarter back view. Facing these satyrs stands Hermes (HEPMEΣ retr., except final sigma). He wears a dotted chlamys with a black border tied at the neck (circular brooch), petasos (dilute hatching along the curve before the brim, to indicate shadow) with red ties and winged boots and carries a kerykeion (four raised dots for gilding on finial) in his left hand. His right hand is raised with thumb and forefinger together. Behind Hermes, Hera (HEPA retr.) moves rapidly away to the right, her head turned back to the left and her right arm outstretched. She wears a chiton (dilute glaze folds on sleeve) with a red tie under the overfold, a himation with a battlement border, a stephane, a snake bracelet and disc earring (stephane and bracelet are done with raised clay and were gilded). She has gathered some of her chiton in her left hand to aid her flight. On the far right Herakles (HEPAKLEΣ retr., except final sigma) moves rapidly to the left: his left foot is off the ground. He is dressed in a striped jacket, trousers decorated with stripes, rows of dots and double tailed blobs, a short chiton and his lion-skin. The upper folds of his chiton are done with dilute glaze. He holds a bow (red string) and arrow out in his left hand and a club, which is done with raised clay and was gilded, back in his right hand. A quiver with two arrows in it hangs from a red strap at his left hip. He is shown in three-quarter back view. Side B: Iris caught by two satyrs, Dionysos and a satyr. On the left a satyr, named ΔΡΟMΙΣ, runs past a plain block: both his feet are off the ground and his arms are outstretched. The preliminary sketch lines indicate that the artist had once intended to draw a folding stool covered with an animal skin on this block. In front of him stands Dionysos (ΔIONVΣOΣ) with his legs crossed, the left frontal, the right on tip toe behind. He is dressed in a long chiton with a red girdle and a himation and has an animal skin (pardalis) tied around his neck and a red ivy wreath in his hair. He has a striped sceptre in his left hand and a black kantharos in his right. The preliminary sketch indicates that a regular vine branch was once intended. In the centre is an altar with volute finials and an ovolo pattern. At the centre of either volute is a lump of raised clay that was gilded. The altar is wreathed with ivy and has three splashes of red, either blood or wine. A satyr, named Ε+ON, is climbing over the altar to reach Iris. He is seen in three-quarter back view and has his right foot on top of the altar, next to the fire-brick, his left leg trails behind. He has gripped Iris' right wrist with his left hand and tugs at the upper folds of her chiton with his right. Iris (IPIN) tuns away to the right, left foot off the ground, but turns her head back towards Echon. She has scaly wings and is dressed in a chiton (dilute glaze folds for second overfold), a plain sakkos and disc earring (raised clay for gilding). In her right hand she holds a kerykeion. In her left hand she has an elongated object filled with a dilute glaze wash: it continues in dilute glaze without relief line contouring up in a high curve with a slight blob at the end. On the right a third satyr, named LΕΦΣΙΣ, stops Iris' flight. He has caught her left elbow with his right hand and endeavours to wrench the object from her with his other hand. He is seen in three-quarter back view; his left foot is off the ground. Ground line: single reserved line. On edge of foot: BPVAOΣ EΠOIEΣEN, in glaze, spaced and divided so that Brygos is under side A, epoiesen under side Β (see fig. 3g). Relief line contours throughout (except hair); dilute glaze for minor interior markings; added red for inscriptions; thin reserved line outside at juncture of offset lip and wall. --The British Museum, Williams, Dyfri, Corpus Vasorum Antiquorum: Great Britain 17, British Museum 9, London, BMP, 1993; Walters, H B; Forsdyke, E J; Smith, C H, Catalogue of Vases in the British Museum, I-IV, London, BMP, 1893
- Description
- Pottery: red-figured kylix (drinking-cup). INTERIOR: Warrior and girl. On the left a warrior sits on a stool with fringed cushion decorated with rows of dots and rows of two-tailed blobs. He is dressed in short chiton (dilute glaze folds on shoulder), dotted himation (battlement upper border, black lower border), cuirass, Corinthian helmet and red greave-pads (upper band crenellated, lower plain). His hair and beard are done with dilute glaze; a long curl falls down over his shoulder. He holds a spear upright in his left hand (a group of dilute glaze lines on upper shaft; point breaks the border pattern) and holds out a bossed phiale in his right. The bosses are done with raised clay and then gilded by using red miltos as a bole. His mouth is open and his name is written as if issuing from it: +PVΣΙΠΠΟΣ. On the right stands a girl in chiton (folds of second overfold and sleeve done in dilute glaze; ends of red girdle show over her right knee) and himation. Her blond hair (done with dilute glaze) is tied up at the back with a double reserved cord with three tassels that fall on her shoulder and a hair slide or clip. She supports the rim of a black shield (reserved line at joint with rim) with her left hand and holds up a dipper with a long handle that terminates in a very schematic duck's head: she is about to pour wine into the warrior's phiale. Over her back is written her name: IEVXΣO. Her disc earring is done with raised clay and was gilded, like the phiale. Border: dotted saltire cross (blobs at ends of arms) alternating with three units of stopt maeander (five- to six-stroke, anticlockwise: reversed behind helmet crest and woman's head, and only two units at two o'clock). EXTERIOR: satyrs threaten Hera and Iris. Side A: Hera threatened by satyrs. Creeping out from under the handle root on the extreme left is a satyr, named ΤΕΡΠΟΝ. His left knee is almost on the ground, his right is doubled up under him; both hands are on the ground. Like all the other satyrs on the cup, he has his mouth slightly open, his hairline is receding, he has an erection and he wears a red wreath of ivy leaves. In addition, however, his long hair falls down in curls over his back. Almost alongside him walks another satyr, named BABAK+OΣ. His fists are clenched (the preliminary sketch shows that the left arm was originally raised by c. 90 degrees). In front of him is a third satyr, named HVAPIEI: (the first letter is cramped and may be a mistake for K), who moves forward, but the way he spreads his hands suggests he may be hesitating (his erection is obscured by the tail of the next satyr). In the centre is a fourth satyr, named ΣTVON, who stoops as he moves forward. He is almost in three-quarter back view. Facing these satyrs stands Hermes (HEPMEΣ retr., except final sigma). He wears a dotted chlamys with a black border tied at the neck (circular brooch), petasos (dilute hatching along the curve before the brim, to indicate shadow) with red ties and winged boots and carries a kerykeion (four raised dots for gilding on finial) in his left hand. His right hand is raised with thumb and forefinger together. Behind Hermes, Hera (HEPA retr.) moves rapidly away to the right, her head turned back to the left and her right arm outstretched. She wears a chiton (dilute glaze folds on sleeve) with a red tie under the overfold, a himation with a battlement border, a stephane, a snake bracelet and disc earring (stephane and bracelet are done with raised clay and were gilded). She has gathered some of her chiton in her left hand to aid her flight. On the far right Herakles (HEPAKLEΣ retr., except final sigma) moves rapidly to the left: his left foot is off the ground. He is dressed in a striped jacket, trousers decorated with stripes, rows of dots and double tailed blobs, a short chiton and his lion-skin. The upper folds of his chiton are done with dilute glaze. He holds a bow (red string) and arrow out in his left hand and a club, which is done with raised clay and was gilded, back in his right hand. A quiver with two arrows in it hangs from a red strap at his left hip. He is shown in three-quarter back view. Side B: Iris caught by two satyrs, Dionysos and a satyr. On the left a satyr, named ΔΡΟMΙΣ, runs past a plain block: both his feet are off the ground and his arms are outstretched. The preliminary sketch lines indicate that the artist had once intended to draw a folding stool covered with an animal skin on this block. In front of him stands Dionysos (ΔIONVΣOΣ) with his legs crossed, the left frontal, the right on tip toe behind. He is dressed in a long chiton with a red girdle and a himation and has an animal skin (pardalis) tied around his neck and a red ivy wreath in his hair. He has a striped sceptre in his left hand and a black kantharos in his right. The preliminary sketch indicates that a regular vine branch was once intended. In the centre is an altar with volute finials and an ovolo pattern. At the centre of either volute is a lump of raised clay that was gilded. The altar is wreathed with ivy and has three splashes of red, either blood or wine. A satyr, named Ε+ON, is climbing over the altar to reach Iris. He is seen in three-quarter back view and has his right foot on top of the altar, next to the fire-brick, his left leg trails behind. He has gripped Iris' right wrist with his left hand and tugs at the upper folds of her chiton with his right. Iris (IPIN) tuns away to the right, left foot off the ground, but turns her head back towards Echon. She has scaly wings and is dressed in a chiton (dilute glaze folds for second overfold), a plain sakkos and disc earring (raised clay for gilding). In her right hand she holds a kerykeion. In her left hand she has an elongated object filled with a dilute glaze wash: it continues in dilute glaze without relief line contouring up in a high curve with a slight blob at the end. On the right a third satyr, named LΕΦΣΙΣ, stops Iris' flight. He has caught her left elbow with his right hand and endeavours to wrench the object from her with his other hand. He is seen in three-quarter back view; his left foot is off the ground. Ground line: single reserved line. On edge of foot: BPVAOΣ EΠOIEΣEN, in glaze, spaced and divided so that Brygos is under side A, epoiesen under side Β (see fig. 3g). Relief line contours throughout (except hair); dilute glaze for minor interior markings; added red for inscriptions; thin reserved line outside at juncture of offset lip and wall. --The British Museum, Williams, Dyfri, Corpus Vasorum Antiquorum: Great Britain 17, British Museum 9, London, BMP, 1993; Walters, H B; Forsdyke, E J; Smith, C H, Catalogue of Vases in the British Museum, I-IV, London, BMP, 1893