How would you draw a picture of something you already know about, but in a very unexpected way? Let’s take something that you are really familiar with, like the sun rising in the morning. Before you make up your mind, let’s think about different ways to show this, and talk about one example. Let’s look together at the painting you see on this vase or container, and figure out what’s going on.

Long ago and far away, the people of ancient Greece explained many events in nature in terms of human figures—and their families and their stories. The ancient Greeks believed that there was a great, wide, flowing stream that surrounded the earth. They called the stream Ocean. And even beyond Ocean was the home of Helios, the sun. We think of the sun as an enormous ball of fire. The Greeks thought of the sun as a grown man, often with a beard, rising up and crossing the skies in a chariot drawn by four horses. Do you know what a chariot is? It’s a special carriage pulled by horses, and the driver rides it standing up. Helios is a very skilled driver, able to manage his horses and his carriage as he crosses the skies every single day.

We can tell who Helios is on this vase because the artist wrote his name above, in ancient Greek letters. He’s the man in the center at the bottom. He holds a long rod that he uses to control those powerful horses he guides each day. Helios lives in a palace beyond Ocean. Remember: Ocean is what the Greeks called the great, wide stream that they believed surrounds the earth.

Every day, Helios rises up, climbing higher and higher into the sky. He’s just starting his day in our story. He’s beginning his journey as he readies his horses; you can see the tops of their bodies as they begin their climb. Above his head, there’s a dark circle with lighter rays all around it—another signal that this is Helios, the sun. Soon he’ll be up in the sky looking down on the earth, able to hear and see all that goes on.

But Helios is not the only character in our story. Up above, on either side there are two women. One of them is called Nyx and other is Eos. They are Night and Dawn. They are on the move! Nyx and Eos both drive chariots, too. We can tell their horses are moving very fast because of the way the artist shows us so many legs in motion. And there are swirls around both figures. Are they moving through clouds? Are they moving through Ocean, the great stream ancient Greeks believed surrounds the earth? How would you show who is Dawn and who is Night? This artist put symbols above their heads. Nyx has a splashy dark red circle above her, and her name, too, in Greek letters. Eos also has a splashy circle, but inside hers there are two lighter circles shown in lines. And for good measure, her name is written out, too.

They all have important work to do! It is the start of the day. Nyx must leave. And Eos is announcing the day’s beginning with the arrival of her brother, Helios. At the end of every day, Helios leaves the sky and returns to his palace. In the meantime, Nyx manages the night, and they all await the new day—when the story begins all over again. It’s a simple but amazing story that happens every single day.

The story of Helios, Nyx, and Eos decorates the front of an ancient Greek container, or vase. The vase once held perfumed oil. There’s another scene on the back of the container, too. If you were the artist, what would you show on the back of this container? Why don’t you try drawing your own version of the sun rising in the morning? Will you use people—or things—to tell your story? Will you use any words? And what will you show on the back of your vase?

Thank you again for listening. Join us for the next Story Time at The Met!