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

Painter of the Berlin Hydria

ca. 460–450 BCE · Terracotta · Greek and Roman Art

Obverse and reverse, Amazonomachy (battle between Greeks and Amazons) The number of figures and the complexity of poses here reflect an innovation that entered vase-painting about the middle of the fifth century B.C. and is generally attributed to the influence of monumental wall-painting. The frontal mounted Amazon in the middle of the composition, her falling comrade to the left, and the overlapping of figures, shields, and weapons dramatically convey the tumult of battle. At the same time, the many spatial planes strain the implicitly shallow stage provided by the black background of a vase. The fundamental incompatibility between naturalistic representation and the expressive possibilities offered by vase-painting led to the latter's demise—although that would come only at the end of the fourth century B.C. In the meantime, artists exploited every possibility to depict motion and emotion in the human figure.

Artist

Painter of the Berlin Hydria

Date

ca. 460–450 BCE

Medium

Terracotta

Culture

Greek, Attic

Department

Greek and Roman Art

Credit line

Rogers Fund, 1907