Terracotta neck-amphora

Greek, Attic

On view at The Met Fifth Avenue in Gallery 151

The iconography of this vase is funerary, with a file of mourning women on the neck. The procession of chariots on the belly is complemented by heraldic lions on the shoulder. The painted decoration is enhanced by snakes added in clay. Snakes are traditionally associated with death because they can burrow under the ground and periodically shed their skin, a sign of renewal.


This neck-amphora belongs to a group of eight terracotta vases (10.210.1-.8) that are said to be from Athens. Despite the absence of archaeological record, they were probably found together in a tomb. Such groups are well attested in excavated burials. Moreover, the iconography of the two neck-amphorae, particularly the one with the mourning women on the neck, is appropriate for a funerary purpose. The group displays stylistic changes that occurred from about 730-700 BCE, a time of artistic innovation that resulted in the end of the formal precision of the Geometric style and the rise of the exuberant Protoattic style.

Terracotta neck-amphora, Terracotta, Greek, Attic

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Terracotta neck-amphora, Terracotta, Greek, Attic
Terracotta neck-amphora, Terracotta, Greek, Attic
Terracotta neck-amphora, Terracotta, Greek, Attic
Terracotta neck-amphora, Terracotta, Greek, Attic
Terracotta neck-amphora, Terracotta, Greek, Attic
Terracotta neck-amphora, Terracotta, Greek, Attic
Terracotta neck-amphora, Terracotta, Greek, Attic
Terracotta neck-amphora, Terracotta, Greek, Attic
Terracotta neck-amphora, Terracotta, Greek, Attic

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