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Source Description

This plaque or tablet shows a scene from the Iliad. The figures are executed in white on a black ground, and the plaque is housed in a metal frame with two rings for hanging. To the right is Priam, the King of Troy, who is begging the Greek leader Achilles (seated) for the body of his son, Hector. Automedontes, Achilles' shield-bearer, stands behind to these figures with his hand to his chin. To the left of the composition is a cart carrying gifts to Achilles, and to the right of this is Hector's chariot. The composition is adapted from the so-called sarcophagus of Alexander Severus and Julia Mammaea in the Capitoline Museum, Rome. It was modelled by Camillo Pacetti in wax. Pacetti received payment from Wedgwood for this work on 10 May 1788. Achilles is the subject of many Wedgwood cameos, medallions and tablets. These include a series of six reliefs depicting scenes from the hero's life, of which this example forms the final part.

Scholar Source Context

Document identity
localId
12137
label
Priam Kneeling Before Achilles, Begging for the Body of His Son Hector
core
obj
dtoType
sculpture
pageCount
1
Source metadata
id
12137
contentType
sculpture
stage
normalized
title
Priam Kneeling Before Achilles, Begging for the Body of His Son Hector
description
This plaque or tablet shows a scene from the Iliad. The figures are executed in white on a black ground, and the plaque is housed in a metal frame with two rings for hanging. To the right is Priam, the King of Troy, who is begging the Greek leader Achilles (seated) for the body of his son, Hector. Automedontes, Achilles' shield-bearer, stands behind to these figures with his hand to his chin. To the left of the composition is a cart carrying gifts to Achilles, and to the right of this is Hector's chariot. The composition is adapted from the so-called sarcophagus of Alexander Severus and Julia Mammaea in the Capitoline Museum, Rome. It was modelled by Camillo Pacetti in wax. Pacetti received payment from Wedgwood for this work on 10 May 1788. Achilles is the subject of many Wedgwood cameos, medallions and tablets. These include a series of six reliefs depicting scenes from the hero's life, of which this example forms the final part.
provenance
Collection of Horace Townsend, until 1914; Sale, American Art Association, New York, 1914 [Beautiful Old Wedgwood Including the Famous Hargreaves Collection of Wedgwood Medallions, Lot 340]; Henry Walters, Baltimore, 1914, by purchase; Walters Art Museum, 1931, by bequest.
date
ca. 1790 (Neoclassical)
rightsUri
CC0
language
en
genreSpecific
Ceramics
plaques
reliefs
imageCount
1
pageCount
1
source
import
dimensions
units
cm
width
18
height
50.5
dimensionsRaw
H: 7 1/16 x W: 19 7/8 in. (18 x 50.5 cm)
style
Neoclassical
Source extras
inscriptions
[Maker's mark] WEDGWOOD
med
jasperware
creator_ids
3389
4325
collection_ids
EAN
exhibition_ids
none
Single page context
seq
1
pageIndex
0
type
photo
mediaId
aa1c52b86f441b73