Artwork Page for Fragment of a Red-Figure Bell-Krater or Calyx-Krater (Mixing Vessel): Female Head (Aglauros)

Details / Information for Fragment of a Red-Figure Bell-Krater or Calyx-Krater (Mixing Vessel): Female Head (Aglauros)

Fragment of a Red-Figure Bell-Krater or Calyx-Krater (Mixing Vessel): Female Head (Aglauros)

c. 460–450 BCE

attributed to Nausicaa Painter

(also known as Polygnotos III; Greek, Attic, active c. 460–440 BCE)
Culture
Greek, Attic
Medium
ceramic
Measurements
Overall: 6.8 x 7.5 cm (2 11/16 x 2 15/16 in.)
Credit Line
Gift of Frances W. Ingalls 1992.369
Public Domain
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Location
102B Greek
Print
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Did You Know?

An inscription identifies this woman as Aglauros, an Athenian princess.

Description

Broken from the upper wall of a large mixing vessel, this fragment shows the head of a woman wearing an earring and an elaborate ribbon in her hair. A faint inscription identifies her as Aglauros, a daughter of Kekrops, the mythical first king of Athens. Although worshipped in a shrine near the Acropolis, Aglauros appears quite rarely in Athenian art, usually with her sisters at the birth of Erichthonios, a future king.
An irregularly shaped ceramic fragment features a profile of Aglauros in burnt orange against a black ground. Facing left, she wears a checkered headpiece accented by thin bands. Delicate black lines define her curly hair, almond-shaped eye, and a small earring. Faded Greek text is inscribed along the upper jagged border. The composition highlights the high-contrast red-figure technique used to detail her features and hair.

Fragment of a Red-Figure Bell-Krater or Calyx-Krater (Mixing Vessel): Female Head (Aglauros)

c. 460–450 BCE

Nausicaa Painter

(also known as Polygnotos III; Greek, Attic, active c. 460–440 BCE)
Greek, Attic

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