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| Keywords: Greek - Black-figure Kylix with Sirens - Walters 4837 - Detail B.jpg Homer does not describe the physical appearance of the Sirens but their tantalizing beauty and alluring song captured the interest of commentators throughout antiquity The Sirens are depicted as composite creatures as early as the 8th century BC a motif perhaps derived from Egyptian sources The earliest types such as those seen here are shown simply with women's heads and birds' bodies without arms or hands Sirens occur not only in narrative scenes with Odysseus and his men but also as decorative motifs as do sphinxes ; during the Classical period they come to have associations with funerary iconography The two-handled vase shown here is a type of kylix known as an eye cup which would resemble a mask when raised to the lips during the symposium The simple black-slip interior reveals several small holes around the handles that were used for repairs in antiquity On the exterior a similar composition dominates each side of the vase in a single band Between two large eyes stands a siren; on one side the siren faces frontally to the right on the other side she turns her head looking back Their full wings are simply drawn with bands of added red pigment Beneath their feet runs a simple ground line of black glaze Above each siren are traces of an inscription perhaps the signature of the potter or painter though it is no longer readable century 6 BC terracotta H 4 1/2 x W 11 13/16 x Diam at rim 9 1/16 in 11 5 x 30 x 23 cm accession number 48 37 16991 Don Marcello Massarenti Collection Rome before 1897 mode of acquisition unknown Henry Walters city Baltimore Walters Art Museum Henry Walters Acquired by Henry Walters with the Massarenti Collection 1902 Things With Wings Mythological Figures in Ancient Greek Art The Walters Art Museum Baltimore 2005-2006 Things With Wings Mythological Figures in Ancient Greek Art Ward Museum Salisbury 2009 Heroes Mortals and Myths in Ancient Greece The Walters Art Museum Baltimore; Frist Center for the Visual Arts Nashville; San Diego Museum Of Art San Diego; Alexander S Onassis Public Benefit Foundation USA New York 2009-2011 place of origin Attica Greece Walters Art Museum license Eye-cups Ancient Greek black-figure pottery in the Walters Art Museum Art from Greece Sirens in ancient Greek art Media contributed by the Walters Art Museum needs category review | ||||
