Artwork Page for Sarcophagus

Details / Information for Sarcophagus

Sarcophagus

c. 100–125 CE

Italy, Rome, Roman Empire

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Medium
Greek marble
Measurements
Overall: 210 cm (82 11/16 in.)
Credit Line
Gift of the John Huntington Art and Polytechnic Trust 1928.856.a
Public Domain
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Location
103 Roman
Print
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Did You Know?

From the Greek word for “flesh-eating,” sarcophagus is now used generically for “coffin.”

Description

The tragic figure Orestes appears three times on the front of this sarcophagus, always wielding a short sword. In the center he stands over the body of his mother Clytemnestra, and at center left over the body of her lover Aegisthus. Orestes has killed them both to avenge their murder of his father Agamemnon, upon his return from years of fighting at Troy. At the far left, three Furies (avenging spirits) rest upon Agamemnon's tomb, while at the far right, Orestes atones for the murders at the Delphian shrine of Apollo, marked by a tripod and rock. On the lid, four reclining women symbolize the seasons, arranged in right-to-left order: Winter, Spring, Summer, Autumn, as indicated by their dress and the contents of their baskets.
A marble relief depicts a violent scene with several nude, muscular men lunging toward reclining and falling figures. On the left, two draped figures sit mourning on rocks. In the center, men raise weapons before a long, draped fabric. On the right, a nude male stands over a fallen figure, holding a bow. The high relief figures feature detailed anatomy, defined musculature, and flowing, intricately carved drapery.

Sarcophagus

c. 100–125 CE

Italy, Rome, Roman Empire

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