Androcydes (or Androkydes) ( grc, Ἀνδροκύδης) of

Cyzicus Cyzicus (; grc, Κύζικος ''Kúzikos''; ota, آیدینجق, ''Aydıncıḳ'') was an ancient Greek town in Mysia in Anatolia in the current Balıkesir Province of Turkey. It was located on the shoreward side of the present Kapıdağ Peni ...

was a Greek painter of the 4th century BC, whose ''Battle of Plataea'' became involved in a political controversy.

Plutarch Plutarch (; grc-gre, Πλούταρχος, ''Ploútarchos''; ; – after AD 119) was a Greek Middle Platonist philosopher, historian, biographer, essayist, and priest at the Temple of Apollo in Delphi. He is known primarily for hi ...

's remarks concerning this work are of interest to

art historians The history of art focuses on objects made by humans for any number of spiritual, narrative, philosophical, symbolic, conceptual, documentary, decorative, and even functional and other purposes, but with a primary emphasis on its aesthetic visu ...

who study history painting as a

genre Genre () is any form or type of communication in any mode (written, spoken, digital, artistic, etc.) with socially-agreed-upon conventions developed over time. In popular usage, it normally describes a category of literature, music, or other for ...

. According to

, Androcydes received a commission from the city of Thebes to paint the battle scene on site. During this period (382–379 BC), the Theban

oligarchy Oligarchy (; ) is a conceptual form of power structure in which power rests with a small number of people. These people may or may not be distinguished by one or several characteristics, such as nobility, fame, wealth, education, or corporate, r ...

had allied with

Sparta Sparta ( Doric Greek: Σπάρτα, ''Spártā''; Attic Greek: Σπάρτη, ''Spártē'') was a prominent city-state in Laconia, in ancient Greece. In antiquity, the city-state was known as Lacedaemon (, ), while the name Sparta referre ...

. When the Spartans were defeated in 379, the work remained unfinished. It was confiscated and dedicated to commemorate a minor skirmish at Plataea, probably in 370, before the

Battle of Leuctra The Battle of Leuctra ( grc-gre, Λεῦκτρα, ) was a battle fought on 6 July 371 BC between the Boeotians led by the Thebans, and the Spartans along with their allies amidst the post- Corinthian War conflict. The battle took place in the vici ...

. Originally, the work was to have honored

Pelopidas Pelopidas (; grc-gre, Πελοπίδας; died 364 BC) was an important Theban statesman and general in Greece, instrumental in establishing the mid-fourth century Theban hegemony. Biography Athlete and warrior Pelopidas was a member of a ...

and

Epaminondas Epaminondas (; grc-gre, Ἐπαμεινώνδας; 419/411–362 BC) was a Greek general of Thebes and statesman of the 4th century BC who transformed the Ancient Greek city-state, leading it out of Spartan subjugation into a pre-eminent posit ...

, but through the efforts of a certain Menecleides, the name of the Theban commander Charon was substituted, either directly in the painting or on a separate dedicatory plaque. This repurposing indicates that battle scenes might be depicted so generically that the ostensible subject of the work could be changed simply by giving it a new title and name labels. Although no longer extant, it is the only painting of a cavalry battle known to predate that of

Euphranor AGMA Apollon Patroos Euphranor. Euphranor of Corinth (middle of the 4th century BC) was a Greek artist who excelled both as a sculptor and as a painter. Pliny the Elder provides a list of his works including a cavalry battle, a Theseus, and th ...

. Indicative of an interest also in genre painting,

Athenaeus Athenaeus of Naucratis (; grc, Ἀθήναιος ὁ Nαυκρατίτης or Nαυκράτιος, ''Athēnaios Naukratitēs'' or ''Naukratios''; la, Athenaeus Naucratita) was a Greek rhetorician and grammarian, flourishing about the end of th ...

reports that Androcydes' gourmet passion for seafood prompted him to devote inordinate attention to painting the fish around a central figure of Scylla in one of his works.J.J. Pollitt, ''The Art of Ancient Greece: Sources and Documents'' (Cambridge University Press, 2001), p. 15
online.
/ref>

References

Ancient Greek painters 4th-century BC Greek people People from Cyzicus Theban hegemony Battle of Plataea Year of birth unknown Year of death unknown History painters War artists 4th-century BC painters {{Greece-painter-stub