The old adage “Hindsight is 20/20” applies perfectly to the study of Greek art. In the modern world, classicists and art historians, in looking back on Greek art, have described, categorized, and grouped ancient works ad nauseum in order to to more easily see progressions in ceramic ware, statues and architecture while still allowing for comparisons between time periods and mediums (e.g. pedimental sculpture and amphoras). With this construct in mind, this paper will analyze one particular calyx krater in order to determine how it fits into the existing taxonomy of narrative as defined by Stansbury-O’Donnell and then compare the piece to other similar narrative scenes for further context and support.
The primary piece of study is a red-figure …show more content…
Hector is the perfect warrior, first in battle: “I've learned it all too well. To stand up bravely, always to fight in the front ranks of Trojan soldiers”. Hector also fights to win kleos for his own name as well as for city of Troy. His wife Andromache embodies the quintessential traits of a Homeric woman as she spins, tends to her home and child, and, finally, is fiercely loyal to her husband and their family name. In the myth, Hector desperately looks to say goodbye to Andromache and his newborn son before he leaves the city to go off to battle. Steered towards the gate by a helpful servant, Hector finds an emotional Andromache among Trojan defenders in the main tower of the city watching an Achaean attack. Hector, the ideal soldier and family man listens to Andromache’s emotional appeal to stay within the walls and fight: “Take your stand on the rampart here…”. Instead, Hector tries to reassure her and then proceeds to take off his helmet and hold his baby boy for what could be the last time. Overall, the scene highlights the pathos of Andromache’s position and also foreshadows Hector’s ultimate demise and Andromache’s future enslavement at the hands of …show more content…
For place, the Walters Krater depicts a unified scene, yet one figure, the older man, is on Side B, whereas the rest of the picture is on Side A. This geographic split in the scene does not align with any of Stansbury-O’Donnell categorizations, and thus presents a major grey area in the taxonomy. In that vein, Stansbury-O’Donnell, in generally remarking on narrative, wrote that “most narrative pictures are single panels…” This Krater is clearly an exception to that generalization and thus again adds to the ‘greyness’ in the narrative taxonomy. Secondly, in terms of time, the young warrior in the Walters piece is turned away from the armor bearing woman, and is instead reaching towards the older man. Consequently, the young man is turning to depart without his helmet or shield. Though that action is not necessarily out of sequence, the youth’s turned body implies that in the future he will either need to reorient himself and get his armor, or leave unprotected. Thus, the Altamura painter presents a more complex scene that takes into account the present and the future; a possible derivation from Stansbury-O’Donnell’s strict “single time and place” definition and an added layer of complexity to the broad
The primary piece of study is a red-figure …show more content…
Hector is the perfect warrior, first in battle: “I've learned it all too well. To stand up bravely, always to fight in the front ranks of Trojan soldiers”. Hector also fights to win kleos for his own name as well as for city of Troy. His wife Andromache embodies the quintessential traits of a Homeric woman as she spins, tends to her home and child, and, finally, is fiercely loyal to her husband and their family name. In the myth, Hector desperately looks to say goodbye to Andromache and his newborn son before he leaves the city to go off to battle. Steered towards the gate by a helpful servant, Hector finds an emotional Andromache among Trojan defenders in the main tower of the city watching an Achaean attack. Hector, the ideal soldier and family man listens to Andromache’s emotional appeal to stay within the walls and fight: “Take your stand on the rampart here…”. Instead, Hector tries to reassure her and then proceeds to take off his helmet and hold his baby boy for what could be the last time. Overall, the scene highlights the pathos of Andromache’s position and also foreshadows Hector’s ultimate demise and Andromache’s future enslavement at the hands of …show more content…
For place, the Walters Krater depicts a unified scene, yet one figure, the older man, is on Side B, whereas the rest of the picture is on Side A. This geographic split in the scene does not align with any of Stansbury-O’Donnell categorizations, and thus presents a major grey area in the taxonomy. In that vein, Stansbury-O’Donnell, in generally remarking on narrative, wrote that “most narrative pictures are single panels…” This Krater is clearly an exception to that generalization and thus again adds to the ‘greyness’ in the narrative taxonomy. Secondly, in terms of time, the young warrior in the Walters piece is turned away from the armor bearing woman, and is instead reaching towards the older man. Consequently, the young man is turning to depart without his helmet or shield. Though that action is not necessarily out of sequence, the youth’s turned body implies that in the future he will either need to reorient himself and get his armor, or leave unprotected. Thus, the Altamura painter presents a more complex scene that takes into account the present and the future; a possible derivation from Stansbury-O’Donnell’s strict “single time and place” definition and an added layer of complexity to the broad