photo: Bruce M. White
On view
Panathenaic amphora (prize storage jar) depicting Athena between Ionic columns topped by roosters (A); chariot race (B),
ca. 480–470 BCE
This vessel is quintessentially Athenian: vases of this shape were filled with olive oil and awarded as prizes to victors of athletic competitions held during the Panathenaia, a festival celebrated in honor of Athena. Here, the helmeted goddess, flanked by a pair of roosters on Ionic columns, strides forward with an upraised spear, as though entering into battle. The reverse of a Panathenaic amphora depicts the event for which the vase was awarded; on this example, a charioteer holds the reins to a quadriga, a four-horse chariot. While its shape, size, and decoration adhere to conventional standards, the inscription—“one of the prizes from Athens”—that typically runs alongside one column is missing, suggesting that the vase may have instead been made for the commercial market. These vessels have been found across the Mediterranean, indicating that they circulated widely, whether by being sold, dedicated in sanctuaries, or deposited in graves.
More Context
Amphoras filled with olive oil from trees sacred to Athena were awarded as prizes to victors of athletic competitions held during the Athenian festival of the Panathenaia. This vase meets most of the canonical requirements for a Panathenaic prize amphora in its shape, size, and decoration. On the obverse, the goddess Athena wields a spear between two Ionic columns surmounted by cocks. Typically an inscription reading "one of the prizes from Athens" runs alongside one of the columns, but because the vase lacks this validating element, it instead may have been made for the commercial market. The reverse of a Panathenaic amphora always depicts the event for which the vase was awarded; here a charioteer holds the reins to a <em>quadriga</em>, a four-horse racing chariot. By the time this vase was made, black-figure had largely been supplanted by the red-figure style. Panathenaic amphoras, however, continued to be decorated in black-figure. Even artists like the Berlin Painter, who otherwise worked only in red-figure, respected this conservative tradition.
More About This Object
Information
ca. 480–470 BCE
Europe, Greece, Athens
Panathenaic amphora
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