Name vase of the Heidelberg painter

Outside of the shell

Tondo of the bowl

The name vase of the Heidelberg painter (inventory number S 5) is the eponymous work of the anonymous ceramist , who is treated under the emergency name Heidelberg painter in science. The Kylix of the genus Siana bowls, preserved only in fragments, is now in the Museum of Antiquities of Heidelberg University . It was acquired by Robert Zahn for Friedrich von Duhn , 1880-1919 professor at the University's Archaeological Institute .

Of the black-figure bowl, only about half of the bowl and this only fragmentary in ten assembled parts is preserved today. The foot is completely missing, a foot that was previously added has been removed again, as have all the other additions. The breaklines have been smoothed in a modern way. The remains that have been preserved are 22.6 centimeters wide. The kylix is made of Attic clay and painted with a gloss tone, also obtained in Attica . Unlike many of these bowls, this very fine-walled kylix was not exported, it is said to have been found at Phaleron . Because of the outstanding painting, the otherwise unknown vase painter was given the name Heidelberger Maler by John D. Beazley .

The outside, as far as it is preserved, shows an assembly of the gods, an ornament not unusual for the time the vessel was made. The remains of eight people and two other figures have survived; only one figure has a complete head. The naming is based on associated attributes or analogical inferences. Due to the state of preservation, this is not possible for all figures. The description is from the left: the first figure cannot be named, she has raised her left hand in greeting. In front of it is Poseidon , larger parts of his head are still preserved. He is holding the trident in his left hand , his face is framed by ringlets. In front of it, dressed in a splendid robe adorned with stars, is very likely Hera . The naming is based on the position behind the central figure of the picture frieze, which shows the god father Zeus sitting on a throne. The magnificently decorated throne ends in lion feet, the back forms a swan. Under the throne lies God's lightning bolt . Zeus holds a knotted stick in his right hand, and with his left hand he greets his son, the god Hermes , who is standing in front of him and who returns the greeting. Hermes brings two companions with it. Athena follows him in full armor, behind this Dionysus . Both can be clearly recognized by their attributes: Athena through her armor with helmet and shield as well as the snakes, which point to the aegis of the goddess; the god of wine through the drinking horn in his left hand. This is followed by a swan and behind it another, not to be named, figure, as well as another, only fragmentary figure with wings that can be seen.

Only a small part of the ivy tendril on the figures of Athene and Dionysus remains from the edge decoration. The bottom of the bowl is varnished in black at the base of the base, from which a black halo emerges, which ends at a circumferential line, followed by two more. A zigzag pattern runs between these three lines and another three lines, the outermost one being the stand line of the figures. The tondo , bounded by a wide band of red and black tongues, shows two figures: one is male, one female, both of them have sticks in their hands. The man wears a chiton and cloak, the female figure has double wings. The interpretation of the persons preserved only as the lower body, in the case of the female figure also in the back part, is not easy due to further missing attributes. It may be Zeus and Nike .

The scene is difficult to interpret. It was often assumed that it might be the introduction of Heracles into Olympus , then the image of the demigod would have to be among the lost fragments of the bowl. But then he should actually be close to his protector Athena, who would introduce him to Olympus. The birth of Athena also seems more than unlikely. Thus it is an indefinite assembly of gods, or the background cannot be seen from the representation. Remnants of red paint are still in many cases, especially on the robes. The white cover color, which for example identified the female figures as women, has largely been lost. The kylix is found in the middle of the 6th century BC. Dated.

literature

Roland Hampe , Hildegund Gropengiesser : From the collection of the Archaeological Institute of Heidelberg University. (= Works of art in Heidelberg . Volume 2). Springer, Berlin / Heidelberg / New York 1967, pp. 44, 101–102, plate 16.
Hildegund Gropengiesser: Corpus Vasorum Antiquorum Germany Volume 31, Heidelberg Volume 4. CH Beck, Munich 1966, ISBN 3-406-00931-X , pp. 25-26 / plate 151.

Web links

Commons : Name vase of the Heidelberg painter - collection of pictures, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

^ Nicolas Zenzen: 1896–1906: Antique originals and their buyers. In: Derselbe (Ed.): Objects tell stories (s). 150 years of the Institute for Classical Archeology at Heidelberg University. Institute for Classical Archeology, Heidelberg 2016, ISBN 978-3-00-054315-9 , pp. 166–175, here pp. 169 f.

[1] Nicolas Zenzen: 1896–1906: Antique originals and their buyers. In: Derselbe (Ed.): Objects tell stories (s). 150 years of the Institute for Classical Archeology at Heidelberg University. Institute for Classical Archeology, Heidelberg 2016, ISBN 978-3-00-054315-9 , pp. 166–175, here pp. 169 f.