François Vase
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The François Vase, a milestone in the development of Greek pottery, is a large volute krater decorated in the black-figure style which stands at 66cm in height. Dated at circa 570 BCE it was found in 1844 in an Etruscan tomb in the necropolis of Fonte Rotella near Chiusi and named after its discoverer Alessandro François; it is now in the Museo Archeologico at Florence. It bears the inscription “Ergotimos epoiesen; Cleitias egraphsen” "Ergotimos made [me]; Kleitias painted [me]” - the first evidence that the roles of potter and painter had become separate at this early date. It depicts over 200 figures representing a number of mythological themes and as such it perhaps makes no overall narrative sense, however it has been suggested that its principal subject is the marriage of Peleus and Thetis. In 1900 a museum guard threw a stool at the case that contained the vase and smashed it into 638 pieces. It was restored in 1904 by Pietro Zei, and a second reconstruction took place in 1974 incorporating previously missing pieces.
[edit] The bands on the pot
The upper most band on the Francois Vase is the Calydonian boar hunt, it depicts the Boar, with male figures on eitherside, attacking it with spears. There are also males underneath the boar, possibly to show they have been gouged and or killed by the beast. The second band is 'funeral games for Patrocolus. Patrocolus, Achilles' "male lover" was killed in the battle of Troy and this band depicts the games after, under the horses hoves in the middle a tripod can be seen, this would have probably been the prize and it also fills in the dead space often found in black figure vase painting. The third band is arguably the most famous of the bands on the Francois vase. It is the procession for the wedding of Peleus and Thetis. The use of procession is a key way to decorate the long, thin shape of a band. In the procession there is Chiron the Centaur, numerous deities, and in the house's doorway Peleus with Thetis in the background in the correct position for a woman of that era i.e. behind her husband. There is a use of colour within the band although it is faded from age. The fourth band depicts king Priam's children fleeing from Achilles. The fifth band is the battle of the lapiths and centaurs. The story is that the centaurs were invited to the Lapith wedding but after drinking large amounts of wine started a fight as they attempted to take away the Lapith women. This lead to a brawl between the centaurs and the wedding parts, as shown on this band. The band on the stand of the pot is the battle of the pygmies and cranes.
[edit] References
- Antonio Minto: Il Vaso François, Florence 1960
- Materiali per servire alla storia del Vaso François. Rome 1981 (Bollettino d'arte, Serie speciale 1)
[edit] External links
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