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Lot Essay
In the typically ornate style of 4th Century red-figure Apulian vase painting, the decorative surface of this imposing vase is almost completely covered with figures, ornamental motifs and objects that appear to ‘hang’ in the field, to striking visual effect.
The neck and entire upper register of the body on the obverse are covered with an Amazonomachy, the battle between the Greeks and the mythological race of female warriors, the Amazons. The Amazonomachy remained a popular iconographical device from the Archaic period onwards, the subject matter appealing to artists of all media because of its mythological roots, its celebration of the exploits of the Greeks, and because of what has been conceived of by some as its relevance to contemporary Ancient Greek society; depictions of Greeks fighting Amazons, Centaurs and Giants, have been interpreted as allusions to the victory of the Greeks over the Persians and, more generally, as the illustration of the triumph of civilization over barbarism and the emergence of order from chaos. As a reminder of the superior might of the Greeks, the Greek warriors are here depicted in the heroic nude. The scene is one of activity and energy. A sense of freneticism is conveyed by the billowing garments of both Amazons and Greeks, the figures facing in different directions, and the horses rearing upwards, their heads bobbing, their mouths agape.
This is in contrast to the more sedate composition on the reverse, depicting mourners surrounding a stele, bearing offerings and adornments for the grave. A preoccupation with the hereafter and the cult of the dead is fitting for a vase which was intended for the tomb, rather than for actual use.
The neck and entire upper register of the body on the obverse are covered with an Amazonomachy, the battle between the Greeks and the mythological race of female warriors, the Amazons. The Amazonomachy remained a popular iconographical device from the Archaic period onwards, the subject matter appealing to artists of all media because of its mythological roots, its celebration of the exploits of the Greeks, and because of what has been conceived of by some as its relevance to contemporary Ancient Greek society; depictions of Greeks fighting Amazons, Centaurs and Giants, have been interpreted as allusions to the victory of the Greeks over the Persians and, more generally, as the illustration of the triumph of civilization over barbarism and the emergence of order from chaos. As a reminder of the superior might of the Greeks, the Greek warriors are here depicted in the heroic nude. The scene is one of activity and energy. A sense of freneticism is conveyed by the billowing garments of both Amazons and Greeks, the figures facing in different directions, and the horses rearing upwards, their heads bobbing, their mouths agape.
This is in contrast to the more sedate composition on the reverse, depicting mourners surrounding a stele, bearing offerings and adornments for the grave. A preoccupation with the hereafter and the cult of the dead is fitting for a vase which was intended for the tomb, rather than for actual use.