from Thetis cabinet (one-of-a-kind)
This exquisite black figure amphora is based on an Attic terracotta amphora (jar) type B, attributed to the manner of the Lysippides Painter, circa 530 B.C. from the Metropolitan Museum Collection (New York).
Obverse, combat between two warriors; Reverse, Dionyssos, the god of wine, between two satyrs.
The Lysippides Painter was a follower of Exekias who specialized in large pots. At the end of the sixth century B.C., such pieces tended to show few figures starkly presented or crowded scenes with complex groupings. The combat here epitomizes the capacity of Greek art to depict the essentials so that a scene remains forceful and meaningful for all time.
The vase is one of two items made during the period November - December 2014, in view of a BBC one film on the ancient Greek vases (Treasures of Ancient Greece).
H: 50cm, RimD: 18cm, MaxL: 30cm