Crater with volutes

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Crater with volutes, around 400-390 BC J. - C., Apulian production of Tarente (Southern Italy), attributed to the painter of the Birth of Dionysos, would come from Bari, ceramics. Musée d’Art et d’Histoire (musée du Cinquantenaire, Brussels, Belgium). Made with MetaShape from Agisoft.

Originally a vase for mixing wine and water at the banquet, the monumental Apulian craters, like this one, seem to have been created for a funeral use. The scene represented here reflects this function: after his death, Heracles is brought to Olympus in the chariot of Athena, her protective goddess. The welcome of the hero in the domain of the gods signals his immortal status.

The painter of the Birth of Dionysis is one of the leading figures of the ornate style, one of the leading artists of ancient Apulian. He paints sophisticated compositions in a rich style, often on large vases.

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