Hydria (water jar): Warrior's Farewell

Gallery Text

An elderly, bearded man in a white garment bids farewell to a helmeted warrior with white shield, probably his son. They communicate across the two-horse chariot — complete with charioteer — that will take the warrior to battle in a fashion more fitting for a hero of the Iliad than a sixth-century BCE Athenian. Without name inscriptions, it remains unclear whether this is a specific mythological scene or a generic one. Regardless, the image casts the common experience of a warrior’s departure in an exemplary, heroic light. Vessels with this subject matter were suitable tomb offerings and exported to other parts of the Mediterranean.

Identification and Creation

Object Number: 1969.14
Title: Hydria (water jar): Warrior's Farewell
Other Titles: Alternate Title: Black-figure Hydria: Hero's departure
Classification: Vessels
Work Type: vessel
Date: c. 550-540 BCE
Places: Creation Place: Ancient & Byzantine World, Europe, Attica
Period: Archaic period
Culture: Greek
Persistent Link: https://hvrd.art/o/287356

Location

Location: Level 3, Room 3410, South Arcade

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Physical Descriptions

Medium: Terracotta
Technique: Black-figure
Dimensions: H. 42 x W. with handles 39 x Dia. 31 cm (16 9/16 x 15 3/8 x 12 3/16 in.)

Provenance

Recorded Ownership History: Private collection.

State, Edition, Standard Reference Number

Standard Reference Number: Beazley Archive Database #9555

Acquisition and Rights

Credit Line: Harvard Art Museums/Arthur M. Sackler Museum, Gift of a supporter of Sardis in recognition of Professor George M.A.Hanfmann and his eleven seasons as field director of the Harvard-Cornell Archaeological Exploration of Sardis
Accession Year: 1969
Object Number: 1969.14
Division: Asian and Mediterranean Art
Contact: am_asianmediterranean@harvard.edu
Permissions: The Harvard Art Museums encourage the use of images found on this website for personal, noncommercial use, including educational and scholarly purposes. To request a higher resolution file of this image, please submit an online request.

Publication History

Antiquities, auct. cat., Parke-Bernet Galleries, Inc. (January 24, 1964), no. 216a
"Accessions of American and Canadian Museums", The Art Quarterly (1969), vol. XXXII, p. 324
David Gordon Mitten and Suzannah F. Doeringer, "Two New Greek Black-Figure Vases", Fogg Art Museum Newsletter, Fogg Art Museum (Cambridge, MA, April 1969), vol. VI, no. 4, p. 107
[Unidentified article], Art Journal (1969), vol. 29, p. 53, fig. 1
John G. Pedley, "A Black-Figure Hydria in the Fogg Art Museum", Studies Presented to George M.A. Hanfmann, ed. David Gordon Mitten, Fogg Art Museum (Cambridge, MA, 1971), pp. 121-126, pls. 32-33
David Gordon Mitten and Amy Brauer, Dialogue with Antiquity, The Curatorial Achievement of George M. A. Hanfmann, exh. cat., Fogg Art Museum (Cambridge, MA, 1982), p. 11, no. 11.

Exhibition History

Dialogue with Antiquity: The Curatorial Achievement of George M.A. Hanfmann, Fogg Art Museum, 05/07/1982 - 06/26/1982
HAA132e The Ideal of the Everyday in Greek Art (S427) Spring 2012, Harvard Art Museums, Cambridge, 01/31/2012 - 05/12/2012
32Q: 3410 South Arcade, Harvard Art Museums, 11/16/2014 - 01/01/2050

Subjects and Contexts

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Verification Level

This record has been reviewed by the curatorial staff but may be incomplete. Our records are frequently revised and enhanced. For more information please contact the Division of Asian and Mediterranean Art at am_asianmediterranean@harvard.edu

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1969.14: Hydria (water jar): Warrior's Farewell