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Terracotta Banquet Group

ca. 3rd–2nd century BCE
On view at The Met Fifth Avenue in Gallery 164
A nuptial banquet takes place on a lavishly decorated and furnished couch (kline). The man reclining at the far right raises a wine jug, while the female, seated at the front edge of the couch, once played a lyre. Two child Erotes join the young couple and all participants are crowned with ivy leaves and wreaths. Exceptional for its three-dimensionality, ornate style and preservation of polychromy, this group visualizes the semantic overlap in Greek thought and art between the bridal and the death kline and the role of lyre music as expression of marital love.

Artwork Details

Object Information
  • Title: Terracotta Banquet Group
  • Period: Hellenistic
  • Date: ca. 3rd–2nd century BCE
  • Culture: Greek
  • Medium: terracotta
  • Dimensions: 9 in. (22.9 cm)
  • Classification: Terracottas
  • Credit Line: Purchase, Patricia and Marietta Fried Gift, 2016
  • Object Number: 2016.253
  • Curatorial Department: Greek and Roman Art

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