Terracotta lekythos (oil flask)
The centaur Pholos, Herakles, Athena, and Hermes
On this vase, the centaur Pholos prepares for a feast, an event whose smell attracts other centaurs and leads to a fierce conflict in which Herakles eventually drives off his assailants. This depiction of Pholos is unusual in that he does not have the expected human abdomen, but instead, his human legs are attached directly to his equine body, giving him the chest of a horse.
On this vase, the centaur Pholos prepares for a feast, an event whose smell attracts other centaurs and leads to a fierce conflict in which Herakles eventually drives off his assailants. This depiction of Pholos is unusual in that he does not have the expected human abdomen, but instead, his human legs are attached directly to his equine body, giving him the chest of a horse.
Artwork Details
- Title: Terracotta lekythos (oil flask)
- Artist: Attributed to the Class of Athens 581.1
- Period: Archaic
- Date: ca. 490 BCE
- Culture: Greek, Attic
- Medium: Terracotta; black-figure on white ground
- Dimensions: H. 7 in. (17.8 cm.)
- Classification: Vases
- Credit Line: Rogers Fund, 1908
- Object Number: 08.258.29
- Curatorial Department: Greek and Roman Art
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