Attic Pelike from the Circle of the Leagros Group

Culture: Greek

Period: around 500 B.C.

Material: Terracotta

Dimensions: 35.5 cm high

Price: Sold

Ref: 2236

Provenance: German private collection A.L. acquired in the 1980s at Galerie Günter Puhze. Accompanied by a certificate of authenticity by Galerie Puhze.

Condition: One handle reattached, otherwise only small repairs on minor wear, corpus intact.

Description: Black-figure pelike, on one side the goddess Athena standing in the centre with a white face and a shield, typical for her depicting a white owl. Athena wearing on her head a diadem and holding her helmet with a large plume in front of her. Dionysus is seated on a diphros opposite her with a slightly bent head and a red beard. In the right half of the image area Hermes is sitting on a column behind Athena, he is wearing a petasos with a broad, round brim and his winged shoes. Between his crossed arms he is holding his caduceus (Hermes staff). The other side depicts a famous scene from the Greek mythology. Dionysus with a long robe and long red beard escorting the also red bearded god of the smiths Hephaestus, riding on an ithyphallic mule, to the Olympus. Prior Hephaestus was expelled by his mother Hera from the Olympus due to his ugly appearance. He took revenge by gifting her with a golden throne from where she could not get up. The gods then sent Dionysus to intoxicate Hephaestus to entice the key for the throne mechanism. This reconciliated him with Hera. Consequently, Hephaestus and Dionysus were together allowed to move in to the Olympus – the scene captured on this pelike. On the foot with an ancient graffito “EV”. The vase is attributed to the Nikoxenos painter, who was a member of the Leagros group producing amphora and pelike in black-figure style. As one of the few painters of his time he turned himself to the red-figure technique and painted in this style especially hydria.