Terracotta kylix (drinking cup)

Attributed to the Briseis Painter 

Period:
Classical
Date:
ca. 480 B.C.
Culture:
Greek, Attic
Medium:
Terracotta; red-figure
Dimensions:
H. 5 3/16 in. (13.2 cm) width with handles 15 3/8 (39.1 cm) diameter 12 1/16 in. (30.7 cm)
Classification:
Vases
Credit Line:
Purchase, Joseph Pulitzer Bequest, 1953
Accession Number:
53.11.4
  • Description

    Interior and exterior, Theseus in Poseidon's undersea palace and his arrival in Athens

    The subject of the decoration is elucidated in a poem by Bacchylides, active in the fifth century B.C. On the interior and one side of the exterior, Theseus, who is bound for Crete to kill the Minotaur, takes leave of his father and stepmother, Poseidon and Amphitrite. On the other side, the victorious Theseus is welcomed back to Athens by Athena.

  • References

    1954. "Recent Accessions of Greek and Etruscan Art." The Metropolitan Musem of Art Bulletin 13(2): pp. 62-63.

    1970. "One Hundred Sixth Annual Report of the Trustees of the Metropolitan Museum of Art for the Fiscal Year July 1, 1969, through June 30, 1970." The Metropolitan Museum of Art Bulletin 29(2): p. 83.

    Bothmer, Dietrich von. 1972. "Greek Vase Painting: An Introduction." The Metropolitan Museum of Art Bulletin 31(1): no. 22, pp. 52-53, 68.

    Ekroth, Gunnel. 2009. “Why (not) Paint an Altar? A Study of Where, When and Why Altars Appear on Attic Red-figure Vases.” In The World of Greek Vases, eds. Vinnie Nørskov, Lise Hannestad, Cornelia Isler-Kerényi and Sian Lewis. Rome, Quasar, pp. 97-98, fig. 7.

    Mertens, Joan R. 2010. How to Read Greek Vases. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, pp. 84-85, fig. 33.

  • See also
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    In the Museum
    Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History
    MetPublications
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