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Source Description

This amphora with a flaring offset mouth depicts Poseidon and Athena on one side and Hermes on the other. Poseidon stands in profile to the right with his left foot propped up on a rock and his left arm bent and resting on his left knee. In his right hand he holds a trident upright which extends into the ornament above. A mantle is draped around his back, right thigh, and over his left leg. Athena stands to the left holding a spear upright in her right hand, and she has a shield with a Gorgoneion and a star device on her left arm. She wears a peplos girded at the waist, necklace, bracelet, and Attic helmet. Hermes is depicted standing to the left. He holds a kerykeion in his right hand at waist level and wears a pestasos, chlamys, and mask (?). Behind him is a stele on which his left arm rests, while to the left and right are olive trees which fill the areas underneath the handles.The subject matter is not the usual for Panathenaic amphorae, which normally have Athena on one side and athletes on the other. Poseidon and Athena are here depicted calmly standing and facing one another on the front, a juxtaposition which brings to mind their contest for the city of Athens. This story is first known to have been depicted in the west pediment of the Parthenon, but there is no sign of strife in our scene. If Hermes wears a mask, as the black line running from his chin up suggests, the scene may in some way have been influenced by a dramatic performance. The generally poor quality of drawing, however, makes it impossible to determine if the painter meant to indicate a mask or not. The olive trees beneath the handles are approporiate fillers because of the tree's association with Athena, the story of the contest, Panathenaic ampohorae, and the Panathenaia.

Scholar Source Context

Document identity
localId
13939
label
Miniature Panathenaic Amphora
core
obj
dtoType
object
pageCount
4
Source metadata
id
13939
contentType
object
stage
normalized
title
Miniature Panathenaic Amphora
description
This amphora with a flaring offset mouth depicts Poseidon and Athena on one side and Hermes on the other. Poseidon stands in profile to the right with his left foot propped up on a rock and his left arm bent and resting on his left knee. In his right hand he holds a trident upright which extends into the ornament above. A mantle is draped around his back, right thigh, and over his left leg. Athena stands to the left holding a spear upright in her right hand, and she has a shield with a Gorgoneion and a star device on her left arm. She wears a peplos girded at the waist, necklace, bracelet, and Attic helmet. Hermes is depicted standing to the left. He holds a kerykeion in his right hand at waist level and wears a pestasos, chlamys, and mask (?). Behind him is a stele on which his left arm rests, while to the left and right are olive trees which fill the areas underneath the handles.The subject matter is not the usual for Panathenaic amphorae, which normally have Athena on one side and athletes on the other. Poseidon and Athena are here depicted calmly standing and facing one another on the front, a juxtaposition which brings to mind their contest for the city of Athens. This story is first known to have been depicted in the west pediment of the Parthenon, but there is no sign of strife in our scene. If Hermes wears a mask, as the black line running from his chin up suggests, the scene may in some way have been influenced by a dramatic performance. The generally poor quality of drawing, however, makes it impossible to determine if the painter meant to indicate a mask or not. The olive trees beneath the handles are approporiate fillers because of the tree's association with Athena, the story of the contest, Panathenaic ampohorae, and the Panathenaia.
provenance
Don Marcello Massarenti Collection, Rome [1897 cat. no. 153]; Henry Walters, Baltimore, 1902, by purchase; Walters Art Museum, 1931, by bequest.
date
early 4th century BCE (Classical)
rightsUri
CC0
language
en
genreSpecific
Ceramics
Panathenaic amphorae
imageCount
4
pageCount
4
source
import
dimensions
units
cm
width
8.8
height
4.6
dimensionsRaw
3 7/16 x 1 13/16 in. (8.8 x 4.6 cm) (h. x max. diam.);at rim: 1 in. (2.55 cm) (diam.);at foot: 11/16 in. (1.8 cm) (diam.)
Source extras
cul
Greek
style
Attic
med
terracotta; red figure
creator_ids
16462
collection_ids
GRC
exhibition_ids
3058
3214
Page inventory
seq
1
type
photo
mediaId
e34831770c74dfdd
hasOcr
no
hasDescription
no
seq
2
type
photo
mediaId
5ba858af5fcc35d1
hasOcr
no
hasDescription
no
seq
3
type
photo
mediaId
dd8fa53e302292ef
hasOcr
no
hasDescription
no
seq
4
type
photo
mediaId
76be9df78d8b3219
hasOcr
no
hasDescription
no