Paestan vase painting was a style of vase painting associated with

Paestum Paestum ( , , ) was a major ancient Greek city on the coast of the Tyrrhenian Sea in Magna Graecia (southern Italy). The ruins of Paestum are famous for their three ancient Greek temples in the Doric order, dating from about 550 to 450 BC, whi ...

, a

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n city in Italy founded by Greek colonists. Paestan vase painting is one of five regional styles of

South Italian , altname = , states = Italy , region = Abruzzo, Apulia, Basilicata, Calabria, Campania, Lazio, Marche, Molise , ethnicity = ''Mezzogiorno'' Ethnic Italians , speakers = 5.7 million , date ...

red-figure Red-figure vase painting is one of the most important styles of figural Greek vase painting. It developed in Athens around 520 BCE and remained in use until the late 3rd century BCE. It replaced the previously dominant style of black-figure va ...

vase painting.

Development

The Paestan vase painting style was originated by Sicilian immigrants around 360 BC, and was the last of the South Italian styles to develop. The first workshop was controlled by Asteas and

Python Python may refer to: Snakes * Pythonidae, a family of nonvenomous snakes found in Africa, Asia, and Australia ** ''Python'' (genus), a genus of Pythonidae found in Africa and Asia * Python (mythology), a mythical serpent Computing * Python (pro ...

, who are the only South Italian vase painters known from inscriptions. They mainly painted bell kraters, neck amphorae, '' hydriai'', '' lebes gamikos'', '' lekanes'', '' lekythoi'' and jugs, more rarely ''

pelike A pelike ( grc, πελίκη) is a one-piece ceramic container similar to an amphora An amphora (; grc, ἀμφορεύς, ''amphoreús''; English plural: amphorae or amphoras) is a type of container with a pointed bottom and characterist ...

s'', chalice kraters, and volute kraters. Asteas and Python had a major influence on the vase painting of Paestum, clearly visible in the work of the

Aphrodite Painter Aphrodite ( ; grc-gre, Ἀφροδίτη, Aphrodítē; , , ) is an ancient Greek religion, ancient Greek goddess associated with love, lust, beauty, pleasure, passion (emotion), passion, and procreation. She was syncretized with the Roman god ...

, a likely immigrant from Apulia. Around 330 BC, a second workshop developed, based on the work of the first. The quality of its painting and variety of its motifs deteriorated quickly. At the same time, an influence by the Campanian

Caivano Painter Caivano ( nap, Caivàn') is a city and ''comune'' (municipality) in the Metropolitan City of Naples in the Italian region Campania, located about 14 km northeast of Naples. The municipality contains the ''frazioni'' Casolla Valenzano and Pasc ...

becomes notable, with garments falling in a linear fashion and contourless female figures. Around 300 BC, Paestan vase painting came to a halt.

Motifs and themes

Characteristics of the Paestan style include decorations such as lateral

palmette The palmette is a motif in decorative art which, in its most characteristic expression, resembles the fan-shaped leaves of a palm tree. It has a far-reaching history, originating in ancient Egypt with a subsequent development through the art o ...

s, a pattern of tendrils with calyx and umbrel known as "Asteas flower",

crenelation A battlement in defensive architecture, such as that of city walls or castles, comprises a parapet (i.e., a defensive low wall between chest-height and head-height), in which gaps or indentations, which are often rectangular, occur at interv ...

-like patterns on garments, and curly hair hanging over the back of figures. Figures that bend forwards, resting on plants or rocks, are equally common. Special colours are used often, especially white, gold, black, purple and shades of red. Hurschmann: ''Paestanische Vasen'', in: DNP 9 (2000), col. 142 The themes depicted often belong to the Dionysiac cycle:

thiasos In Greek mythology and religion, the ''thiasus'' ( el, θίασος, thíasos), was the ecstatic retinue of Dionysus, often pictured as inebriated revelers. Many of the myths of Dionysus are connected with his arrival in the form of a processio ...

and symposium scenes,

satyr In Greek mythology, a satyr ( grc-gre, σάτυρος, sátyros, ), also known as a silenus or ''silenos'' ( grc-gre, σειληνός ), is a male nature spirit with ears and a tail resembling those of a horse, as well as a permanent, exa ...

maenad In Greek mythology, maenads (; grc, μαινάδες ) were the female followers of Dionysus and the most significant members of the Thiasus, the god's retinue. Their name literally translates as "raving ones". Maenads were known as Bassarids, ...

Silenos In Greek mythology, Silenus (; grc, Σειληνός, Seilēnós, ) was a companion and tutor to the wine god Dionysus. He is typically older than the satyrs of the Dionysian retinue ('' thiasos''), and sometimes considerably older, in which ...

Orestes In Greek mythology, Orestes or Orestis (; grc-gre, Ὀρέστης ) was the son of Clytemnestra and Agamemnon, and the brother of Electra. He is the subject of several Ancient Greek plays and of various myths connected with his madness an ...

, Electra, the gods

Aphrodite Aphrodite ( ; grc-gre, Ἀφροδίτη, Aphrodítē; , , ) is an ancient Greek goddess associated with love, lust, beauty, pleasure, passion, and procreation. She was syncretized with the Roman goddess . Aphrodite's major symbols inclu ...

and

Eros In Greek mythology, Eros (, ; grc, Ἔρως, Érōs, Love, Desire) is the Greek god of love and sex. His Roman counterpart was Cupid ("desire").''Larousse Desk Reference Encyclopedia'', The Book People, Haydock, 1995, p. 215. In the ear ...

Apollo Apollo, grc, Ἀπόλλωνος, Apóllōnos, label=genitive , ; , grc-dor, Ἀπέλλων, Apéllōn, ; grc, Ἀπείλων, Apeílōn, label= Arcadocypriot Greek, ; grc-aeo, Ἄπλουν, Áploun, la, Apollō, la, Apollinis, label ...

Athena Athena or Athene, often given the epithet Pallas, is an ancient Greek religion, ancient Greek goddess associated with wisdom, warfare, and handicraft who was later syncretism, syncretized with the Roman goddess Minerva. Athena was regarded ...

and

Hermes Hermes (; grc-gre, wikt:Ἑρμῆς, Ἑρμῆς) is an Olympian deity in ancient Greek religion and Greek mythology, mythology. Hermes is considered the herald of the gods. He is also considered the protector of human heralds, travelle ...

. Paestan painting rarely depicts domestic scenes, but favours animals.

References

Bibliography

* Arthur Trendall: ''The red-figured vases of Paestum.'' Rom 1987. * Arthur Trendall: ''Rotfigurige Vasen aus Unteritalien und Sizilien. Ein Handbuch.'' von Zabern, Mainz 1991 (Kulturgeschichte der Antiken Welt Vol. 47), (esp. p. 223-264) * Rolf Hurschmann: ''Paestanische Vasenmalerei''. In: '' Der Neue Pauly'', vol 9, 2000, cols. 142-143 *

Thomas Mannack Thomas Mannack (born in 1958) is a German classical archaeologist. Mannack obtained his Doctorate in 1992 with at the University of Kiel. The thema of his dissertation was ''Beazleys spätere und späteste Manieristen''. He is a specialist in ...

: ''Griechische Vasenmalerei. Eine Einführung''. Theiss, Stuttgart 2002, S. 166f. {{Commonscat, Pottery of Paestum, Paestanische Keramik Ancient Greek vase-painting styles Paestum (ancient city)