Megarian bowl, fragmentary

2nd century BCE
On view at The Met Fifth Avenue in Gallery 171
All but one of the figures on this bowl are inscribed. From left to right, the Cretan king Idomeneus attacks Phaistos as he steps into his chariot. To right of this vignette, Athena and Ares sit on rocks, facing a personification of the river Skamandros, while observing a fight between Agammenon and a now nameless Trojan foe. The subject matter on this bowl closely follows an episode in book V of Iliad, in which Athena exhorts Ares, the god of war, to remain neutral during the specific duals of the Trojan conflict that took place between the characters mentioned above. As in Homer's text, the two Olympians observe the fighting from the banks of the river Skamandros, a detail that confirms the subject matter depicted on the bowl.

Artwork Details

Object Information
  • Title: Megarian bowl, fragmentary
  • Period: Hellenistic
  • Date: 2nd century BCE
  • Culture: Greek
  • Medium: Terracotta
  • Dimensions: 3 1/2 in. (8.9 cm)
  • Classification: Vases
  • Credit Line: Purchase, Mr. and Mrs. Stuart Tray Gift, 1980
  • Object Number: 1980.11.2a–c
  • Curatorial Department: Greek and Roman Art

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