VesselsGreek5th century BCE

Neck Amphora (storage jar): Nereus (or Triton) with Scepter and Dolphin; Woman Running

c. 490 BCE

Artists

The Berlin PainterArtist

Description

On one side: a half-anthropomorphic, half-fish sea-god, Nereus, or perhaps Triton. He faces to the right and carries a scepter in his right hand with his little finger extended, and a dolphin in his left, which he holds by the tail. He has long curly hair tied into a bun and a beard. He wears a wreath in added red on his head, and a cloak (himation) decorated with triple dot motifs over a long-sleeved tunic (chiton). Instead of legs, he has a huge fish tail, which rises out of the bottom of his cloak (which conceals the junction between man and fish) and curves around before it ends in a stylised crescent-shaped tail fin, more like a dolphin’s tail than a fish’s. The tail is slightly tinted with dilute glaze and is decorated with single dots in a grid-like arrangement, with a reserved stripe marked out along its length. There are two pairs of fins coming out of the tail. On the other side: presumably a Nereid. The Nereids were the sea-nymph daughters of Nereus, the most famous of whom is Thetis, the mother of Achilles. She walks to the left with a wide step, her arms extended in front of her. Her right hand is higher up and seems to point toward the left. She wears a long-sleeved tunic (chiton). This woman is not specifically identified by an inscription or by any iconographical detail, but we can be reasonably sure from the context – alongside the sea god – that she is a Nereid. Strips of meander pattern act as ground line for the two figures, and are the only ornamental decoration. A small trident/psi has also been carved into the foot, apparently in modern times; the same mark is found on the foot of 1927.148, another amphora donated by Edward Perry Warren.

Classification

Vessels

Technique

Red-figure

Medium

Terracotta

Culture

Greek

Period

Archaic period

Century

5th century BCE