Terracotta hydria: kalpis (water jar)
On the shoulder, two warriors in combat
The shape and the glossy black glaze contribute decisively to the elegance and power of the hydria. The combat on the shoulder, probably deliberately anonymous, evokes a heroic encounter from the epic cycle of poems concerning the Trojan War of which only the Iliad and the Odyssey survive. The palmette ornament in the handle zone represents a motif popular with red-figure vase-painters of the generation contemporary with Euphronios.
The shape and the glossy black glaze contribute decisively to the elegance and power of the hydria. The combat on the shoulder, probably deliberately anonymous, evokes a heroic encounter from the epic cycle of poems concerning the Trojan War of which only the Iliad and the Odyssey survive. The palmette ornament in the handle zone represents a motif popular with red-figure vase-painters of the generation contemporary with Euphronios.
Artwork Details
- Title: Terracotta hydria: kalpis (water jar)
- Period: Archaic
- Date: ca. 510 BCE
- Culture: Greek, Attic
- Medium: Terracotta; black-figure
- Dimensions: H. 13 in. (33 cm)
- Classification: Vases
- Credit Line: Fletcher Fund, 1956
- Object Number: 56.171.30
- Curatorial Department: Greek and Roman Art
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