On view
Skyphos (drinking cup) depicting a symposium with Hermes and Herakles,
ca. 490 BCE
While this skyphos, a type of drinking vessel, is colossal in size and was unlikely to have been used, its shape places it among those vessels used in thesymposium, the elite ritual drinking party that was popular among Athenian male citizens. The vessel depicts a mythical symposium, not a human one, in which the hero Herakles and the god Hermes recline on pillows outdoors as they shake hands. The grapevine growing around them hints at the presence of Dionysos, the god of wine. The meat they are about to consume occupies the foreground. On the other side, the two heroes are also shown resting on pillows, but instead of clasping hands, Herakles gives to Hermes a cornucopia filled with fruits, cakes, and nuts. If we imaginatively position this vessel within a symposium, the god and hero would seem to join in the human revelry, coming together in a moment of ritual celebration.
More About This Object
Information
ca. 490 BCE
Europe, Greece, Athens
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