Terracotta column-krater (bowl for mixing wine and water)

Lykomedes Painter

ca. 520–510 BCE · Terracotta · Greek and Roman Art

Within the mouth, ships and dolphins On the body, obverse, the struggle between Herakles and Apollo for the Delphic tripod; reverse, onlookers Representations of Herakles' attempt to seize the tripod from the oracle of Apollo at Delphi were popular in Attic vase-painting from the end of the sixth century B.C. to the mid-fifth. In addition to featuring the local hero, Herakles, they afforded artists the opportunity to depict two male figures in motion. This challenge particularly interested practitioners of the newly introduced red-figure technique, but it also spurred black-figure artists who wished to remain up-to-date.

Artist

Lykomedes Painter

Date

ca. 520–510 BCE

Medium

Terracotta

Culture

Greek, Attic

Department

Greek and Roman Art

Credit line

Rogers Fund, 1907