The Tyrrhenian amphora is a specific shape of

Attic An attic (sometimes referred to as a '' loft'') is a space found directly below the pitched roof of a house or other building; an attic may also be called a ''sky parlor'' or a garret. Because attics fill the space between the ceiling of the ...

black-figure Black-figure pottery painting, also known as the black-figure style or black-figure ceramic ( grc, , }), is one of the styles of painting on antique Greek vases. It was especially common between the 7th and 5th centuries BCE, although there are ...

neck amphora An amphora (; grc, ἀμφορεύς, ''amphoreús''; English plural: amphorae or amphoras) is a type of container with a pointed bottom and characteristic shape and size which fit tightly (and therefore safely) against each other in storag ...

. Tyrrhenian amphorae were only produced during a short period, about 565 to 550 BC. They are ovoid in shape and bear striking decorations. The handle is usually decorated with a lotus-palmette cross or vegetal tendrils. It always terminates in a red-painted ridge. The vase body is painted with several friezes. The uppermost of these, on the shoulder, is usually especially notable. It often contains

mythological Myth is a folklore genre consisting of narratives that play a fundamental role in a society, such as foundational tales or origin myths. Since "myth" is widely used to imply that a story is not objectively true, the identification of a narrat ...

scenes, but the first

erotic Eroticism () is a quality that causes sexual feelings, as well as a philosophical contemplation concerning the aesthetics of sexual desire, sensuality, and romantic love. That quality may be found in any form of artwork, including painting, scul ...

motifs in Attic vase painting also occur here. Unique motifs include the sacrifice of

Polyxena In Greek mythology, Polyxena (; Greek: ) was the youngest daughter of King Priam of Troy and his queen, Hecuba. She does not appear in Homer, but in several other classical authors, though the details of her story vary considerably. After the ...

. Often, the figures are explained by added inscriptions. The other friezes, usually two to three in number, are often decorated with animals. At times, a frieze is replaced with a vegetal band. The animal friezes and use of colour resemble

Corinthian vase painting Corinthian or Corinthians may refer to: *Several Pauline epistles, books of the New Testament of the Bible: **First Epistle to the Corinthians **Second Epistle to the Corinthians **Third Epistle to the Corinthians (Orthodox) *A demonym relating to ...

. It is likely that the Attic vase painters copied Corinthian examples, so as to improve their products’ attractivity on the

Etruscan __NOTOC__ Etruscan may refer to: Ancient civilization *The Etruscan language, an extinct language in ancient Italy *Something derived from or related to the Etruscan civilization **Etruscan architecture **Etruscan art **Etruscan cities ** Etrusca ...

markets. Thus, the Athenian producers entered direct competition with the then market leader,

Corinth Corinth ( ; el, Κόρινθος, Kórinthos, ) is the successor to an ancient city, and is a former municipality in Corinthia, Peloponnese, which is located in south-central Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform, it has been part o ...

, by producing features popular in Etruria, such as neck amphorae and colourful decoration. Corinth only produced few neck amphora. Thus, the Athenians apparently deliberately served a

niche market A niche market is the subset of the market on which a specific product is focused. The market niche defines the product features aimed at satisfying specific market needs, as well as the price range, production quality and the demographics that it ...

. The

Etruscans The Etruscan civilization () was developed by a people of Etruria in ancient Italy with a common language and culture who formed a federation of city-states. After conquering adjacent lands, its territory covered, at its greatest extent, rou ...

themselves also produced similar vases. The large majority of the nearly 200 Tyrrhenian amphorae now known were found in Etruria. Early artists to paints such vases include the

Castellani Painter The Castellani Painter was an Attic vase painter of the black-figure style active in the second quarter of the sixth century BC. The Castellani Painter is especially well known for his drawings on Tyrrhenian amphorae, of which he is considered t ...

and the

Goltyr Painter The Goltyr Painter was an Attic vase painter of the black-figure style. He was active in the second quarter of the sixth century BC. He is well known for his work on Tyrrhenian amphorae. He mostly painted animals, often with rather bulbous head ...

, later ones the Prometheus Painter and the

Kyllenios Painter Hermes (; grc-gre, Ἑρμῆς) is an Olympian deity in ancient Greek religion and mythology. Hermes is considered the herald of the gods. He is also considered the protector of human heralds, travellers, thieves, merchants, and orato ...

. The

Tyrrhenian Group Tyrrhenian may refer to the: * Tyrrhenian Stage, a faunal stage from 0.26 to 0.01143 million years ago * Tyrrhenians, an ancient ethnonym associated with the Etruscans * Tyrrhenian Sea * Tyrrhenian Basin * Tyrrhenian languages See also * * ...

was named after this type of vase. In his 1983 paper '’On the Dating of the Tyrrhenian Group’’,''

Oxford Journal of Archaeology The ''Oxford Journal of Archaeology'' is a quarterly peer-reviewed academic journal published by John Wiley & Sons on behalf of the School of Archaeology, University of Oxford. It was established in 1982 and the editors-in-chief are Nicholas Purc ...

'', 2, pp. 279–293. the British archaeologist Tom Carpenter suggested, on the basis of iconographic and epigraphic considerations, that the vases were produced later than normally assumed, namely between 550 and 530 BC. Further, he raised the possibility that they were produced outside

Athens Athens ( ; el, Αθήνα, Athína ; grc, Ἀθῆναι, Athênai (pl.) ) is both the capital and largest city of Greece. With a population close to four million, it is also the seventh largest city in the European Union. Athens dominates ...

, perhaps in northern Attica or even outside Attica.

References

Bibliography

Thomas Mannack Thomas Mannack (born in 1958) is a German classical archaeologist. Mannack obtained his Doctorate in 1992 with at the University of Kiel. The thema of his dissertation was ''Beazleys spätere und späteste Manieristen''. He is a specialist in t ...

: ''Griechische Vasenmalerei. Eine Einführung'', Theiss, Stuttgart 2002, p. 117f.

External links

* {{Greek amphorae Amphorae Ancient Greek pot shapes