Terracotta amphora (jar)

Attributed to the Orvieto Painter
ca. 540 BCE
On view at The Met Fifth Avenue in Gallery 171
Obverse, the Return of Hephaistos
Reverse, banquet

In Attic vase-painting, horses are, by far, the most frequently depicted animal, with an emphasis on their beauty and speed. Representations of the Return of Hephaistos, in which the smith-god goes to Mount Olympos on the back of a donkey or mule, probably bring with them an implicit comparison with aristocratic riders and their noble mounts.This Chalcidian vase is a simplified adaptation of an Attic black-figure model.

Artwork Details

Object Information
  • Title: Terracotta amphora (jar)
  • Artist: Attributed to the Orvieto Painter
  • Period: Archaic
  • Date: ca. 540 BCE
  • Culture: Greek, Chalcidian
  • Medium: Terracotta; black-figure
  • Dimensions: H. 10 3/8 in. (26.4 cm); diameter of mouth 4 5/16 in. (10.9 cm); diameter of foot 3 11/16 in. (9.3 cm)
  • Classification: Vases
  • Credit Line: Fletcher Fund, 1956
  • Object Number: 56.171.1
  • Curatorial Department: Greek and Roman Art

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