Athenian Black Figure Vases

128 Pages·1974·28.158 MB·English

by  John Boardman

WORLDOFAR
'
Athenian 13lack Figure Vases
John 13oardman. 3H3 illustrations
Atheni.m black figure vases bear the work of consummate
artist!>, like Exekias, who depicted on them scenes of myth
and everyday life which deepen our knowledge and
understanding of Greek antiquity. In this handbook John
Boardman enables the reader to study the many aspects of
the vases, and to grasp the essential style of a painter or
group of painters, without having to consult a number of
expensive, and not always easily accessible, publications.
A fina l section is devoted to the mythological scenes and
other decorative features of the vases. 'Demonstrates a
broad and penetrating grasp of Greek art and archaeology
... comprehensive and concise yet never offer<; less than
adequate discussion in crisp, lucid prose' (The Time~
Literary Supplement) 'Will undoubtedly become a
standard work of reference for many classical students
and teachers' Qournal of H ellenic Studies)
ThanK'S <ltld H udc;on
ISBN 0- 500 - 20138 - 2
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9
Sir John Boardrnan
was born in T927. :\nd educated ,\t
Chigwell School ancl Magdalcnc College, C.unbridgc. He
spent several yeal" in (;recce, three of thf'm as Assistant
I )ircctor of the British School of 1\rchaeoloh'Y at Athens,
and he l1:1.' exc.tvatcd in Smyrna, Crete, C hios :md Libya.
l'or t(>ur yc:trs he w.ts :ut Assistanc Keeper in tht' Ashrnok.m
Museum. Oxford, and he subsequc::ntly lwc::nm: Reader in
Chssical Archaeology and fc::JI~>w <.>f 1\ilt:rton College,
Oxf(·,rd. I le is now Lincoln 1-'r(>fes~or l'.rm:ritus of Cl;1ssical
Archaeology and l\rt in O xfim l. :mci a Fdlow of the llrirish
Academy. Professor lk>ardrmm lm~ .-..:r:ittcn widely on the
-Greece:
I
art and archaeoloh'Y of Ancient lis other books in
the World of Art. series in cl w;lc A.theninll Red r~f!UYI~ Va.<~~S:
Th1~ .!ln:haic Paiod, Alht?>'ticm Red F(~urr Vases: 'i'ltt~ Cla.<si(cll
Period, Gm~k !lrt and volume.~ 'o;l:•(;ret~k. Sculprun· nwering
the .'\rch.tie. Classic:i)·~~ntf t .at~
Clmical ~'i~rio(~ . .: ·
. .
•, .I • , ...
,,
. .. ..
'"
~ ·
WORLD OF ART
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I
\
'
ATHENIAN
BLACK FIGURE VASES
a handbook
JOHN BOARDMAN
illustration s
385
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THAMES AND HUDSON
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CONTENTS
Pref.1ce
7
INTRODUCTION
J
EARLY ATHENIAN I3LACK FIGURE
2
The Pioneers; The Gorgon Painter to Sophilm;
Other groups
KLEITIAS, SIANA CUP PAINTERS
3
AND OTHERS 3
I
Siana cup painters; Kleitias; Other pot
paintl·r~:
Tyrrhenian amphorae
'"I''
:\m of thl' boo~ l"tu:d lw th~ pubh,her J\ J
I''"'''
p.1pab.1< 1.. '"bJCCt t<> th<' conduion that 11 4 THE MID CENTURY AND AI TER )·?-
,Jullnor b\ ".1\ nf tr.ld<· or otiH-rWN' be lent.
Lydos; The Pamtcr; Exd..t.l\ .md Group E: I ittk·
Amasi~
I<'">IJ. lur~·.l our or oth<·r\\ ,,,. nrcul.u,·J Without
Masters and other cup paimer'; Other por and
rlw pubh,Jll'r \ pnor con,,· m f(>nn of painter~
111 Jll\'
b1nd111!( ur , m~r nth,·r dun diJt 111 \\ hid1 11 IS Niko\thcnc~
puhh,ll<·d .111.! "1thnut .l '11111\Jr nuadltiOII
uu hh.hn~ tlu.·,l· wurtl, h('Jn~ unpn'\C'd on ~•
THE AGE OF RED FIGURE
103
pun.:h.t,t:"r.
\Ub't'lllll'llt
Bilinguists I; Cup paimers; The Annmcnes PauHer and
• I<Ji 1 1 h.llll<'' .lmlllmhon Ltd. I nndon
Lcagros Group; Other pot paimcrs; Utlmgui\t$11; Lckythoi
(~or ll',:tc.:d t.:dnton ll)t) l
l~cpnmnl t<J<J7
6 THE LATEST BLACK FIGURE
t\11 H1gl11' Hc,cn<·d. No p.lrt ofthl> puhhcation
The lek ythos painters; Other late \\'Ork
llM\ h~.· n.:produu~d or tl,lll,ntiued in Jtl) fi1rn1 or
b\ .\11\ 11H.',II1\. <.·lettromc or IHn h~nJlc,\1. Jncludlng
phol<;topy. r<'< nldlllf' or .my otlwr mfonHJtion PANATHENAIC VASES
7
,tot.\~l' .ut~.l rctrH.'\ ,tl 'Y'tl'lll, \vithout priw
P<'l'llll"lnll 111 "n1111g I Will tlw pnbli,hcr.
8 ODDS AND ENDS
i'IIN 0-500-.l<> I JX-.?. Six technique; Polychrome; Black vases;
Miniaturl·~;
Athens or Attica?; Emigr;1tlts and Imitators
l'nau<'cl md bound 111 0.,111g.1por<· by C.S. Cr;aphics
SHAPES, NAMES AND FUNCTIONS tll4
Amplwrac; Hydriai; Oinochoai; Wine mixers and coolers;
Cups; Dowls; Oil flasks; Ritual shapes; Other shapes
1<)3
R ELATIVE AN D ABSOLU TE CHR ONOLOGY
10 PREFACE
G F.N .ERAL DECORATION
I l
Conventions; Inscriptions; Florals; Animals and Monsters
205 Something like twenty thousand Athenian black figure vases have been
SCENES Of R.EALIT Y
12
discovered, and many more reach the light of day each yt~ar from excava
Everyday life; Fighting; Wine, women, boys and song;
tions, controlled and illicit, or from the shclvcs of de:ders and old <:ollections.
Sport; Commerce and industry; Religious occaswns
Of comparable works surviving from antiquity only A them' red figun· vases
are more numerous and diverse in shape and subject. The black figure v~ses
215
SCEN ES Or MYTH
3 present the earlit:st major corpus of mythologi<:al scenc:s in Gnx:k art, and <lre
I
The Gods; Herakles; Theseus and other heroes; Th~ Trojan the earliest series of works so pkntiful and so clt1sdy studied that the
Cycle; Other frgures of myth relationships and identity of artists and studios can bc worked out. They havt:
tlwrefore dairm~d an intportant part in any study of <>reek art or myth, and
234 arc conspicuous in nniseun!S and collections of C lassical art. Nevl:rtheless,
C hronological chart
publications of the major collections havt: never also given a cornprchensive
235
Abbreviations account of the history of the subject, while monographs on vase painting have
235 never been so fully illustrated that ~tudents have Jl(lt het'll obliged to tum to
N otes and bibliographies
many other books for pictures, and there is no systematic account of the
2.p
List of illustrations subject-matter oft he scenes painted nn This handbook hopes to remedy
V<\SCS.
these shortcomings - to give a history of the ••rt full and detailed enough
index of artists and groups
for connoisseur and student, supported by pictures numerous enough to
r
ndex of m ythological subjects demonstrate the quality of the work of the fincst artist~ as well as rhe
appearance of the work by le~~ competcnt painters, and to add an account of
General indcx
the subsidiary decoration and the figure since these often have more to
sccm~s,
convey to the museum visitor or student than simple consider<~tions of style,
shape and date. If this has meant th<lt parts Qf the book arc more 'archaeo
logical' than' art historical" l hope this will prove tQ gennal advalltage, but it
has seemed best to omit from tltis volu me any dctaikd consideration of the
techniques of potting and painting except in ~o f:Lr as tht~y affect the history of
the stvle.
'
The account of the styles of Athenian black figure painting based on Sir
i~
John .l::kazley's brilli<lnt work in distinguishing paintcrs and groups. This he
had expounded in articles and books, and in his Devd(lJmlflll (~{ A rric Black
Fi}!ure (r95 1) he gives an account of the subjccr which is more profound than
that offcrtxl hen.:, but less complctc, less fully illustrated and different in its
aim, being bas1.:d on a series oflectures. Other chapters rely in varying degrees
on the articles and books of other schnlars, but. throughout, the need to
7
.. .
consider :~ll ;lspects of the works involved - tbeir style, date, shape, subject
nwtter- has led me to take a more personal view of some problems. So this
attempts rather mm·c than a summary of the work of othcrs, and for a subject
Chapter One
which is too readily studied piecemeal llO\-vadays, or vay briefly and
conventitmallv sketched in the art histories, it is perhaps timely to presl:l1l a
•
more (.lct.1iled synoptic view. Even so, it ·will be incomplete, generalisations INTRODU CT ION
a hound, and the reader must mildly qualify for hitnsdf tny use of tenm like
, . - I '
never or a w avs .
'
On.: furtha point on the subject-matter of this hook must be made here.
From about S10 BC mt the major technique of vase painting in Athem i~ red
The black figure technique of vase painting was invented in Corinth in the
figure, not bl·a~:k figure, and some painters practised both techniqtH.:s. lt might
years around c. It involves painting figures in black silhouette, incising
700 B
sct~m smmgc to exclude consideration of the n:d figure vases here. Coavec"
all linear detail so that the pale day shows through the black, and adding, if
nient:e dictates the arrangement, but it is supported by the materia.!, sinct~
required, touches of red and white paint, all applied before the vase was fired.
most painters were nor 'bilingual' and the further development of black
It was a revolutionary m ethod of decoratilHl for pottery. Hitherto Iron Age
figme deserves comideration on its own for its occasional quality~ for its
Greece had known only the Geometric style with its angular silhouette
indepcnd(~ncc, and for its plenty, while even in its iconography, all 1s by no
figures of men and animals, rarely admitting any detail in outline drawing.
means shan~d vvith red figure. I have done my best eo indicaw where red
This was a style practised hest in Athens and not unknown elsewhere, but it
figure has its effect and eo n:mind the reader of tlK· importance of the ne""
may wdl be that the Corinthian artist's virtual abstemion trorn Geometric
idiom, but a comparably detailed study of its development must appear
figure drawing made it easier for him to evolve the new technique, probably
elscwhne.
under the influence of imported eastern ivories and metal work with incised
T he pictures in the book have been chosen to denwnstrate the full_
decoration, and with it to accept new figure conventions and a new
devdopm\:nt of the style, but <llso to illustrate the fullest possible rang<: oi
orientahsing repertory of subjects. h was Corinthians, then, who developed
shapes ;md ftgun: scem~s. Since it seerncd most i rnportant to keep together
the technique through the seventh century on vases dominated by animal
works of the group or artist, the pictures acnnnpany the sectiom on
S;Hm:
frie:r.es, with occasional myth scenes, in the meticulous miniaturist stvle of the
~tylc, and in otht::r sections the reader's patience will not, I hope, be strained by
'
Protocorinthian series. Athenian meanwhile, on the vases we know
painter~.
having to rdcr back to relevant illustrations. it has sometimes proved
as Protoattic, prefl~rred silhouette and outline drawn figures, often executed
convenieHt to use drawings display the full spread of a figure scene or
to
r
Il.
on large pots, sometimes adding white and very rarely incising derail But
decoration which is hard to discern on a poorly preserved surface. It would,
by about 630 Athenian artists were beginning to use the black figure
of course, have been agreeable to have presented still more pictures, and lSC
technique for all the figure work on their vases, and in the last decades in the
larger ones, bm then this would have.becn a quite different book, at a quite
century they used it for the filling ornament as well. 'Athenian Black Figure'
difl\:rent price.
had begun and in the course of the following hundred and fifty rears it
My main debt is to Sir John J3eaz.lcy's published. work: then to the writings
effectively won the markets of the C7rr.:t·k world.
of more sd10lars than 1 can readily name here; then to those museums,
PrescnL-day knowledge and understanding of Athenian vases is based on a
colknors and photographers who have permitted me to illustrate their vases
multiplicity of studies devoted roughly to the three topics which serve eo
and use tht:ir prints. The resources ofthl~ Ashmolean Museum Library and the
head the major sections in this book - style, d<~t:or:nion and shape; but the
n~~nky archivl~ of phmographs have considerably lightened my task.
studies have not progressed at equal pace. The vases were not being collected
in any numbers uJ·1til the eightc<:nth century, usually from Italy where the
built tombs often gave up intact specimens. Greece was less accessible and at
any rate the circumstances of burial seldom yielded complete vases, so it
remains true that Italy the prime source. This has meant, in the first place,
i~
that it took some time tor the vase~ to bt~ recognised <lS Greek rather than
Etruscan, and, in the senmd place, that the national and private collections of
9
they are given may be taken from that of a potter who signs some oft he vases
Europe arc ric.:her sourc:es f()r study than Greece itself, even with tl~c increase
(as the Amasis Painter) : from kalos names (explained on p. which appear
201)
in scienriti~: exe a vation and recording in the country over the last f1fty years.
on some (as the Antimcncs Painter); from key vases (as the Painter of Berlin
From the beginning ~dwlarly and dilettante interest in the vases was directed
1686); from the names of owners of key vases (as the Oakcshott Painter): or
to the mythological content of the tigure scenes upon them. This intcn:st has
f
from characteristics of style (as .Elbows Out 158l or the Long Nose Paintt:r).
remained strong and the study has yielded important new evidence about the
f ortunately the study of style began with the study of painters and we have
development of myth, details and variations in various storit:s, otherwise
been spared any such artificial classification of Early, Middle and Late, [, 11,
rec.:orded only in te:'Cts which are often tar later in dare, and a proving ground
and Ill, such as is imposed on rhe anonymous works of prehistory or the less
for theories :~hour the development of iconographi~: and narrative convc:n
we11 charted wares of Archaic Greece. These are, after all, the w<;rks of men,
tions in Greek art. In this book, devoted to the black figure vases, in relative
employed mainly in one restricted quarter of the city of Athens, and we
isolation from arts in other materials and periods, il has proved possible only
understand rhern by understanding the relationship between them, ben veen
to summarise the iconographic conventions peculiar to black figure and give
potter and painter, master and pupil, as wdl as by studying them against the
a guide to the recc.1gnition of figures and scenes.
social and political history of their day.
The shape of the vases appealed from the start to the Neo-Classic:i~t. T he
Who were these men, painters and pottt:rs? We must start fro m their
modem student is, however, more concerned wHh funcuon and w1th tht:
signatures. A painter who is being explicit signs ' ... egrapsen'
study of shape and proportion which can reveal the idt:ntity of i11dividual
- ' . .. painted (this)'. But against the few names thus offered there are sixtv
,
potters :.md workshops, or can give a criterion for dating which is indepen
which appear as ' ... cpoiesen' - ' ... made (this)'. The word for 'made' is
dent of de~:oration. These studies art: new·, and basically 'archaeological',
that used later by artists signing, for instance, sculptures, gems or mosaics, so
supported by the rare potter signatures, to -.,vhich we shall re.tum.
on vases it might rder to the painter. But on (JCc.:asion we find an 'epoiesen'
The study of style, especially of the individual painter's style, was slow to
and an 'cgrapsen' signature on one vase, eith(:r with two (as with
name~
develop although painters' signatures were read and wllcctcd. 13y the end of
f46J)
Kleitias and Ergotimos who collaborated on the Fran\ ois Vase or with
the last centurv the attribution of unsigned vases began to ocwpy schobrs,
one name clain-iing both functions (as does twice). Moreover some
F.xeki~1s
but it was lef~ to !ohn Beazlcy (who died, a Knight and Companion of
vases carrying the same (as of Nikosthenes) are obvi
'cpoie~en' ~ignatures
Honour, in t~) tace the whole range of surviving vases, and to put <.1nkr
1 ()70)
ously painted by different artists. H ere we: are quite clearly dealing with either
into the study oft heir painters. His achievement with black figure, attributing
the potter or the studio owner, and in many instances it is apparent thar the
to painters or assigning to closely defined groups well over three quarters of
co1mi10n factor is potter work. Where .Exekias does not sign with tht: twin
the works known to him, is exceeded only by his comparable work on red
formula he writes si m ply 'epoicsen ', yet it is certain that his hand was on the
figure, and expressed in his book of lists, Artic Black Figure Vase Painters,
'
brush and only probable that ir was at the wheel. So 'cpoiesen ' may often
published in ry)6, and supplemented in J>aralipomena, publis~ted . posd~u­
mean 'potted ', can imply ' painted' and may imply ' painted and potted'
mouslv in l97I. The principles of attribution, based on the combmanon of an
whi<:"h must often have been true in many workshops. ' Owner-potter' may
overall appraisal of style and composition, with comparative study of detail,
then be im plied. It has been suggested that ' epoieseu ' usually means' owner' :
as in the rendering of drapery or anatomy, were well demonstrated in his
then we would expect detectahly different potter work with the same owner
early essay on a black figurt: artist, the Antimenes Painter, published in 1927.
signature. Nikosrhenes' many signatures might seem evidence fcwthis, but
These principles arc the ont:s which have guided the work of many other
the signed vases nearly all have a distinctive originality of shape and we may
scholars who have contributed to this field of study. And Beazlcy was no art
be misled by his pas.sion for advertisement and his devotion to the export
historical snob. He devoted as much care to assigning and collecting the -.,vork
trade which guaranteed a better survival rate fur his work. it is difftcult to sec
of po<.1r or hack artists as to that of tbc masters. As a result, his view and ours
all the ' epoiescn' names ofLittle Masters as own en of separate establishments
can be ~:omprch(:nsivc over the full range of the ware, and this has made
rather than simply p<.mers. ln the fac(: of the rare twill' epoiescn ·signatures (as
possible its archaeological use as a yardstick for the relative and absolute
of Archikles and Glaukytes 1116], Anaklcs and we must assume
Nikosth~~ncs)
chronology of Archai~: Greece. The historiral importance of this work cannot
collaboration, but surely not in the potting, here an owner or painter may
be argued in detail here, but will receive passing mention where the principlt:s $(.)
be involved too. We also find examples where we be reasonably sure
~hall ~:an
of d tronol<.)gy are discussed.
that potters' signatures reveal painters' names (as with A masis). But .most
W e know the names of about a dozen Athenian black ftgure painters for
surviving signatures seem to be of potters or owners, and that they were
ct:rtain, but tleazlt:y has somt: four hundred artists or groups. The new names
TT
'
'
'
\
'
.
Etruscan marker. So the of potters have been
~talll\ ~omc 'urcc~,ful 111<1)'
imcribed b~ painter~ who by choice or necessity renuined .monynwu~ is .1
acqUJr:d throug.h wealth. We have no rt'.lson "d1.1tever to believe that
reAe<.:tlon upon the Importance of the potter in the industry. an import.lncc
ArchaiC vase pamters won e\tc:em ·" 111 tht• way that sculptors or
.1ni~ts
"hich we. preoccup1ed "vith the decoration, may roo easily forget.
.uch.necb n~1~ht; but '' c m a) smpcct ~hat \OI1K' of our v.l\e p.unten practi~ed
In the t·.uly ~i:-..th ccmury the Athenian law-giver Solon i~ said ro haw
other and se m or Thc,e arc all w '" h1ch then·"' ill be ro
art~. ~ubject~ occa~ion
t•ncouragcd the immigr.uion of non-Athenian cr.tftsmen. Apart from some
return at vanous stages in the narrauve.
CornHlH.m-msplrcd porter work there i~ no clear evidence from the v.ISt'S for
For Athem' potter~· qu.uter it'>df we lun~ to await sull the c\·idcncc of
the worl- of hand' trained elsewhere, bur the srorv doe' refleC£ on the
and rhat e\·1dencc be 'cr.lppy. f'ht· quarter la) in the ovcr
' ex~avauon, lll:l}
1mpon;mt role: of non-citizen mctics in the practiCe of the arts m A them. And
bllllt bcnYccn the A menc.ln t•xc.l \.ltiOII\ tht• Agora and the Gerfnan
ar~ 111
we can .1dd to th1s the c,·idence later in the cenrur~ for the pre~ence of 1sland
cxca,·auom ar the D1pylon Gate. lt m.1y seem too w romance, e\·en
t'.l~)
,111d lom.m sculptors working in Athens. We may catch a little of this the
111
unscholarly, bur we a lot in our undt·r,r.wdmg ofantlqlnty by lctring lists
lo~e
potter .111d p.lintt·r name~ - L ydos, who signs si m ply .Is 'the Lyd1.111'; A m.1sis
and and alleged aflin1t1cs dommatc \tudy. ror thc\c were ,,hen
s~apes vear~
"ho c.1rne~ the llcllcniscd form of a common but .1bo royall:gypri.ln n.1111e;
AmaSIS and Exekia<> .-men, not typolog1ral upher~ - ,at at tht·ir.benrhcs in
\1!-clm, the ethnic of.1 native of Sicily: Thrax, ofThrace; Kokhm. Colchb.
Athens at no grcat d1smnce from each other. and no doubt passed each other
To these we nl.l) .1dd some name~ of potter~ and painters ofe.1rly red figure
da~l Y; '~hen the dand1es, pohtici.m~. po_cts .u~d sold ic:rs of Athens strolled by
SiLmos, .mothL·r Sicilian native name; Mys, of Mysia; Skythcs, ofScythia:
the .>tails, over the bnght vases fresh from the kiln, approved a mottO
nod~ed
llrygos, oi"Tbr,ln'. But, except possibly f(>r 'the Lydian', we arL' not bound
pr:mmg a fashionable beauty, ~mile? at m.111y :111 allmion to the life or politics
ro look lor non-Athcnian or servile blood in the~e men, nor is there .111ything
of which eludes now, t'll.JOycd the f1rst truly popular figurative art
the.da~ u~
gencr<dly in thcir work to indicate experience outside Attica. We shall s~.:c that
of antillulty.
Am.1~i~ provides a good test of this, and the results :~re inconclusive but at least
'
~uggcsnvt'.
There art' no signatures on Athenian black figure vases until the painter
Sophilm in the 570'. Then they come thick and fast, b11t there is many a good
painter, ro whose hand over a hundred va~es can be attributed, who seems
never to h.IVe ~1gned. So the signatures are a mancr of' person:~) pride or
choice, ratht:r than deliberate advertisement, except for the poncr or owner
Nikosthc:m·, who saw that most ofhis work was counter-s1gncd. The status of
the art 1\t':. we can barely judge. That they should prai~ the dand1es of the dJy
"Ith l...ll<l' 1\.lllll'' (sec p. ~o 1) need mean nothmg. Thn·c pottt'r' Neard1o\,
Andok1de' and the early red figure potter/painter Euphron10s could a !lord
cmrl) \etllptural dedications on the Acropolis at Athem, and declared thetr
cr;llt the dc:d1catory inscription~. This i' not ,1 penod wh~eh Wt' can
111 111
d1,cover .lccuratt·h the co~r of decorated vases. but from later evidence wc:
'
m.l) guc:" th.lt a t:urly large vase co~t day's wage. it is With the Atheni.m
,1
bl,1ck tigurc: v.1sc:s, especially of the later sixth century, that we have ~ome
opportunity to \tudy the methods of trading them since m.lll) be.1r mnscd
m<ITb on their bases. u~ually groups oflew:rs or monogram~. optimistically
known Js 'merchant marks·. Since there is often close correspondence in the
nurks on v.1scs from a single p:~inter or workshop, it seems that they were
imcribl·d very soon aftn production and so arc not likely ro clucid,ne more
than local retail conditions in the potters' quarter. llowcvcr, there wascleJrly
money in pottery and we fmd Attic studio~ carefully studying the m:~rket and
producing w.Hl'' to suit it notably the Tyrrhcnian amphorae and i1nit.1tions
of Etrmran vase sh.1pes from the Nikosthcnc~fPamphaios studio for the
l'rotoollic omplroro from Elc•u•i<. Otiy "''"'
1
mrd J'oiyplrcmos
I~
.I:I.L'HLIN A34 (f(mnt~rly known as the Woman Painter). Two ofhis v:~ses arc
from a find on Aegina (the vases went to .Berlin but arc now lost or destroved)
from whit:h we lea m much about the finest Protoattic vase painting.' On
L>J
them the human faces- indudiug one named hero are drawn in outline
Chapter Two
in the old manner, the dress is with red, white and rosettes, the
CQVt~red
background ftll is orientalising with zigzags dot rosettes, and there is still
~nd
EARLY ATHENIAN BLACK FIGURE
to he seen the old bla<.:k-and- white pattern of rays. llut rite rest black figure
i~
with lavish additions of red and white. Examples of his work from Athens
show how he abando ned outline for laying white over black in the proper
r
black figure manner - as fo r his sphinxes' L1Ces 4]. and whik the 1111 remains
the same the subsidiary patterns are d oser to those oft he Late Protoa>rimhian
Athenian vase painrers of the middle of the seventh century <.:ould achieve a
vases of the 63o's. He was probably at work by 630, but not as late a·s since
grandeur of scale and composition wbit:h the miniaturist blat:k figure tech 620
there is no sign of the influence of the full Corinthian style ofblack figurc.llis
niques of Corinth, although more controlled and preose, <.:ould not match.
human figures belong still to the Athenian tradition, but his animals, with
The Athenian painter was well aware oft he new technique since, alt!10~1gh Ins
their new te<.:hnique and monumentality, are novel, and fi>r their sheer size
own vases never travelled further than Acgina or the Islands, the Corllltlllan
and presence ea si\ y challenge any products of Corinth in these years although
did, and they were well known in Athens itself. Nor did he have an): pos!tivc
there is still some stiffness and rigidity ofo utline, for instance in the treatment
abhorrence of incision, and he was prepared to use it for lllinor detaJls ot hau
of wing feathers. The Painter of .l:lerlin A34 was a pioneer, and claims an
or anatomv <lS on the Odysseus and Polyphemos of the farnous Eleusis Vase
pai ted ju;t' before the mid-century r1 l Lltcr vases adlllit more incisi~)n a_nd important position in the history of Atheni;~n vase painting, but it was his
11
successors who finally established the new idiom in Athens and set the course
<~dd red paint to the white used for incidental detail, in the Connthtan
manner, and in the 63o's we can discern the first Athentan pamters who use to a new stvlc.
'
The fmt 'personality' in Athenian bla<.:k tigure to be recognised by
black figure for all their figure work. .
modem scholarship was the NF.SSOS PAINTF.n, named after his Athens vase 15]
The dominant decorative style on Corinthian vases had been of am mal
showing Gorgons on the belly, Heraklcs fighting Ncssos on the neck (he
friez~s lz), and ac<.:eptan<.:c of the black figure technique in Athens seemed to
writes Nctos and .l:leazlcy came to the full Attic form of the name, Nettos;
carry with it some of Corinth's obsession w·ith this sdtcn1e. Many ofth e early US<.'
I use the commoner Greek form). An earlier master of the animal stvle was
black figure vases of Athens carry fine large ~mmals, hcrakhcally p~sed a~d
'
identified from finds in Athens and Aegina and called the Chimaera Painter
executed with a command of pattern :md prectston at least equal to Connth s,
from the subject he t•vice painted [7]. M ore finds in Athens and especially in
but there is an increasing use of animal friezes to decorate minor vases or
the Attic countryside cemetery at Vari have made clear that one artist only is
major areas of large vases, th roughout ~he first two generations ~>f the ~~s~ of
. involved, and his stature and importance can now he properly judged.
the new technique in Athens. A few pamters could nse above th1s rcstr~cttO~l
Bcazley called him the Chimaera and Nectos Painter; I leave him with the
and offer finely composed narrative ~cenes, while the quality ~f pottmg ts
first sobriquet he acquired - the Nessos Painter. H is earliest vases resemble
alw<~ ys high. ft may be again Corinth whose influence was, th1so t:1 1ne, S1. 1u
those of the P;~inter of Berlin A34, with 'J>rotoa>rinthian' filling Qrnamcnt.
tary, introducing new shapes (column craters, cups) and_ a range narrao:e
Dut, on the shoulder ofh is name [5] there is a new black figure treatment
v;~se
figure scenes which perhaps depended on Pelopmmes_1an narrattv~ arts m
of the floral chain "\vhich the Protocoriuthian artist normally drew in outline.
other m;~terials, and wbit:h encouraged the A thent an pamters to reahse rnorc
On later work the incised rosettes of the fi.tll Corinthian black figure are
fully the qualities of monumental narrative they had n:ver re~Jiy l~st. By the styl~
admitted, and then become the rule, so we may believe his ·working life to
end(.)[ the phase described in this chapter, the regtme of the ammal fnezes was
span the last quarter of the seventh century, seeing out the transition from
coming to an end.
Protocorind1ian to the full Early Corinthian style.
I6J
His vases, like his figures, are big: the massive skyphos-craters rn.
(1.10
The Pioneers (c. 635 to 600) high), often with domed lid and high <:onical stand, which are the pride of the
Vari find; a big neck amphora - name vase; and a new invention of the
hi~
One artist illustrates within his surviving attributed work the transition from
Athenian potters' quarter, the 'belly amphora' with one pie<.:e profile which
the idiom of orientalising Protoauic to full black figure. He is the P AlNTEn OF
T)
14
offers a fuller ftdd for tl1c figures although many early examples keep a The Gorgon Painter to Sophilos (c. 600 to 570)
separate neck panel [81. The only small vases he painted were_of ano~her new
shape, the shallow bowl known as a lckane, reserved for ammal fnczes and The early years of the sixth century see a !;Onsidcrable c:hang~ in the fortunes
with animals or a gorgoncion in the tondo within. He did not wholly esc~tew of the Athenian potters' quarter. Several new vase shapes and schemes of
outline drawing, fur some "vomcn's faces, lions' teeth and the gorg~>neta (a decoration arc introduced, and the example set by Corinth can be obscrv(x\
both in the dominance of animal frieze decoration and by the fact that for the
convention v.:hich died hard) but he develops subtle new conventions for
first time Athenian vases begin to compete in the HL'lrkets of the Greek world
black. figure using double or treble inc~sed lines _eo a~centu_atc important
and are fimnd from the Black Sea ro Libya, from Spain to Syria.
features where the smaller Corinthian ammals earned smgle hnes only. The
double shoulder line for beasts soon becomes a hallmark of Attic painting, as The GoRGON Pt.JNTER (c. 6oo w 58u) is the most prolific succes~or to the
Nessos Painter. H e is sparing with mythologic.al scenes and human fig
well as the greater detail bestowed on animal features and limbs. He is
particularly good at incised surface patterns on bodies, ofloc_ks, scalc_s, ~eath_ers ures [ 11], and they arc aJwa )'S accompanied by animals or animal frit:7.eS.
Other vases carry animal frie1.es only, or single animah [12- 14], but many are
or circles. He uses little white, except in the lines of dots m the Connth1an
manner and for some female flesh, but he likes red in broad masses, or fur rcdtKed in size from those of the late seventh centurv. Tht~ stvle is still
' '
precise and his lions in particular are distinctive for their square muzzles,
alternating with bla(.;k for wing feathers. and for male and so~e monster
toothy grins, hatched forelocks, and the end locks of the back mane, often
f.'lces. The • male = red, female = whit<~' conventions of Egypnan art may
overlapping. W ings arc executed with neat rows of secondary feathers. A few
h;we had some direct effect here and arc the only realistic features on the
otherwise unrealistically coloured black figures. The debt to Corinth i~ his of the old dot rosl~ttes linger in the field and thl~ old rosette borders are not
f(>rgotren, while a new f<mn of floral chain is evolved, the lotus square,
filling omament has been indicated, but with it there arc black figure verstons
seldom splaying so much now (at least in frier.es), the palmettes neatly filling
of the delicate pal mettc tendrils from Protoatuc and Island vases. The herald1c
between, the interlace properly placed, and bands of wavy lines on the
animals on his large vases pose with dignity and are well fitted t? the bellymg
flowers. I lis few human figures arc stilfand mannered but his name vase offers
bodies or domed lids which they decorate. They reduce well m the smaller
friezes and admit still the grazing horses, rare at Corinth, but f.'lmiliar on our first full frieze with figures [1 1 J - a f1ght ami the Gorg<.ms pursuing the
Perscus whom the Nessos Painter omitted from his name vase. The big d.i.nos
Athenian vases since Geometric. His mythological scenes have all the monu
mentality of Protoattic but he has learned from Corinth to mak~ his figures bowl, which is on a separate st;md, carries nine fric7.es of animals and five
of florals alone besides the figure frieze. Other new shapes worth noting are
move with a new and subtle plausibility and he can devote maJOr areas of
the ' Deianira shape' lekythoi with long ovoid bodies, often decorated by
vases to nyth, even excerpting from a stock scene as w ith the G(~rgon Sisters
1
painters of the Gorgon Painter's workshop [1 5, , 6J, whme style is looser than
who lack their quarry on his name vase. He successfully combmes_the best
their master's but whose imaginative composition of figure scenes improves
qualities of the Athenian tradition in vase painting with the new subjects and
on the Gorgon Painter's rather sober repertory. The nnster paints an early
tcchni4ucs of Corinth. . .
l J,
Of his conte!llporarics the PmAF.US PAINTER's name v~sc [9] 1s ~arly, w1th version of the lckythos, with a sphen cal body 14 which, for this feature
stiff rather primitive figures of which only the animals d1splay a ~1ce sense of only, rcalls the Corinthian aryballos flask ; oinochoai with various shapes of
l
size and pattern. Notice the way the lion's cheek folds are styhscd ~to_ a scroll lip (especially the olpai IJJ), also much t:wourcd by contemporaries; to
gether with plates, kothons and miniature amphorae (amphoriskoi), more
and palmctte. Others, like the PAJ~TER, c~owd tl:c1r b1g vases
B llLEUOPHON
clearly derived from Corinth. Although an artist of distinction the Gorgon
\,.,.·ith figures and fill which bewme hard to d1stmgmsh, w~1lc the L10N
1 Painter can be seen have mbmitted rather more to the regimen of Corin
with his balding, worried lions has a fiaJT whtch leaves us to
PAINTER [ 10
thian stvles, and the dominance of animal friezes boded ill for Athenian black
regretting that w little of his work survives. B_ut the pro~uction of fig:, re
'
figure. A senior contemporary ofhis, far less prolific, simpler but more fluent,
decorated vases in Athens in these years was tar from brJsk and, but tor a
\vas the CERAMF.Jcus PAJNTF.R. The importall(:e of the animal frieze style was
N essos Painter vase in Etruria, we kmnv of none which travelled beyond
well demonstrated on his olpc where even the small vase is divided into
Attica or nearby Aegina. One Athenian bowl of the 62o's apparently painted
l17J.
registers, and the single myth figure in the upper frieze is flanked by lions
by an immigrant or visiting Corinthian, reminds us C>f what was stJJI the
In the same circle was born the series of HmtstH HiAD AMI'HOltAE, of the
d()IJ1inant va~e painting (.;entre of these years.
new ' belly' shape, with a horse's head and neck on each side [tBJ, and one,
exceptionally, with an outline-drawn woman's head drawn on one side.
17
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' I.