Volute Krater (Mixing Bowl)
330-320 BCE
Medium
terracotta, red-figure
Dimensions
85 × 45.2 × 36.8 cm (33 1/2 × 18 × 14 1/2 in.)
Classification
vessel
Department
Arts of Greece, Rome, and Byzantium
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Accession Number
102079
Rights
Public Domain
About this artwork
On the front of this vessel, a warrior and his horse stand in a naiskos (tomb) surrounded by attendants with offerings; above them is the god Eros and on the handles male and female followers of the god Dionysos are depicted. On the back another naiskos (tomb) is decorated with large white figures. Since the krater is a funerary vessel, these figures may be symbolic representations of the dead or they may depict marble statues of the tomb’s occupants.
About the Artist
Ancient Greek
The artist known simply as "Ancient Greek" represents the anonymous masters of Attic vase painting, a cornerstone of Classical Greek art from the Archaic and Classical periods (circa 700–300 BCE). Little is known of their personal life, as ancient Greek potters and painters rarely signed their works or left biographical traces; early life and training remain not well documented. These creators ope...