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Water jar (hydria)
Greek
Late Archaic Period
about 490 B.C.
Place of Manufacture: Greece, Attica, Athens
Medium/Technique
Ceramic, Red Figure
Dimensions
Height: 41.7 cm (16 7/16 in.); diameter: 27 cm (10 5/8 in.)
Credit Line
Bartlett Collection—Museum purchase with funds from the Francis Bartlett Donation of 1912
Accession Number13.200
NOT ON VIEW
CollectionsAncient Greece and Rome
ClassificationsVessels
Catalogue Raisonné
Caskey-Beazley, Attic Vase Paintings (MFA), no. 069.
DescriptionThis hydria is decorated in two areas: the main panel on the body of the vessel, and a smaller panel on the shoulder.
Main panel: A carpenter, wearing a short tunic pulled down to his waist, is drilling a hole in the lid of a large chest. On the right, a nursemaid is holding the baby Perseus. On the left, a balding, long haired, bearded man (Akrisios, the father of Danae) is leaning on a staff and gesturing to the others. Danae, wearing an elaborate hairstyle with ribbons and an elegant dress (chiton) and cloak (himation) stands behind the chest, gesturing in protest of her fate.
On shoulder: Three youths baiting a bull. The one on the left has a cloak draped over his shoulder like a toreador, and aims a spear at the beast. The second boy from the left (the hero Theseus?) engages directly with the bull, as if in a boxing match. The bull lowers his head. The boy on the right also wears a cloak over one arm and holds a spear. He sits, as if ready to jump up for action.
Main panel: A carpenter, wearing a short tunic pulled down to his waist, is drilling a hole in the lid of a large chest. On the right, a nursemaid is holding the baby Perseus. On the left, a balding, long haired, bearded man (Akrisios, the father of Danae) is leaning on a staff and gesturing to the others. Danae, wearing an elaborate hairstyle with ribbons and an elegant dress (chiton) and cloak (himation) stands behind the chest, gesturing in protest of her fate.
On shoulder: Three youths baiting a bull. The one on the left has a cloak draped over his shoulder like a toreador, and aims a spear at the beast. The second boy from the left (the hero Theseus?) engages directly with the bull, as if in a boxing match. The bull lowers his head. The boy on the right also wears a cloak over one arm and holds a spear. He sits, as if ready to jump up for action.
ProvenanceSaid to be from Gela, Italy. By 1912, Edward Perry Warren (b. 1860 - d. 1928), Rome and London; 1913, sold by Edward Perry Warren to the MFA for $18,948 [see note]. (Accession Date: January 2, 1913)
NOTE: Total price paid for MFA accession nos. 13.186 - 13.245. According to information provided by Warren, this hydria is from Gela.
NOTE: Total price paid for MFA accession nos. 13.186 - 13.245. According to information provided by Warren, this hydria is from Gela.