Krater by the Underworld Painter Staatliche Antikensammlungen Munich 1

The Underworld Painter was an ancient Greek Apulian

vase painter Ancient Greek pottery, due to its relative durability, comprises a large part of the archaeological record of ancient Greece, and since there is so much of it (over 100,000 painted vases are recorded in the Corpus vasorum antiquorum), it has ex ...

whose works date to the second half of the 4th century BC.

Career

The Underworld Painter is the successor of the

Darius Painter The Darius Painter was an Apulian vase painter and the most eminent representative at the end of the " Ornate Style" in South Italian red-figure vase painting. His works were produced between 340 and 320 BC. The Darius Painter's conventional name ...

, in whose workshop he began his career and where he worked with other influential craftsmen. This was a large factory-like workshop, probably at Taras. He most frequently depicted theatrical scenes, especially ones from the Classical tragedies by

Euripides Euripides (; grc, Εὐριπίδης, Eurīpídēs, ; ) was a tragedian of classical Athens. Along with Aeschylus and Sophocles, he is one of the three ancient Greek tragedians for whom any plays have survived in full. Some ancient scholars a ...

, and mythological themes.

Works

One of his works shows Hades and

Persephone In ancient Greek mythology and religion, Persephone ( ; gr, Περσεφόνη, Persephónē), also called Kore or Cora ( ; gr, Κόρη, Kórē, the maiden), is the daughter of Zeus and Demeter. She became the queen of the underworld after ...

in her palace in the underworld. The compositions and the mythological content are close to those of the Darius Painter, and the influences can be seen in his depictions of robes and faces. Other subjects include Hades kidnapped Persephone,

Eos In ancient Greek mythology and religion, Eos (; Ionic and Homeric Greek ''Ēṓs'', Attic ''Héōs'', "dawn", or ; Aeolic ''Aúōs'', Doric ''Āṓs'') is the goddess and personification of the dawn, who rose each morning from her home at ...

kidnapped

Cephalus Cephalus (; Ancient Greek: Κέφαλος ''Kephalos'' means "head") is a name used both for the hero-figure in Greek mythology and carried as a theophoric name by historical persons. ''Mythological'' * Cephalus, son of Hermes and Herse. * Ceph ...

, and

Castor and Pollux Castor; grc, Κάστωρ, Kástōr, beaver. and Pollux. (or Polydeukes). are twin half-brothers in Greek and Roman mythology, known together as the Dioscuri.; grc, Διόσκουροι, Dióskouroi, sons of Zeus, links=no, from ''Dîos'' ('Z ...

abducting the daughters of

Leucippus Leucippus (; el, Λεύκιππος, ''Leúkippos''; fl. 5th century BCE) is a pre-Socratic Greek philosopher who has been credited as the first philosopher to develop a theory of atomism. Leucippus' reputation, even in antiquity, was obscured ...

. In the first two vases he is quite free in his presentation, he distributed the figures on different levels and separates them by tendrils friezes. The third vase is another thematically appropriate image, which is unique in the vase painting is one of its kind: Castor and Pollux fight against the sons of

Aphareus Aphareus (Ancient Greek: Ἀφαρεύς) may refer to the following figures. * Aphareus, a Messenian king, son of Perieres and Gorgophone. * Aphareus, a Centaur that attended the wedding of Pirithous and Hippodamia. In the battle initiated by th ...

. His early work has influenced the later artists

Painter of Louvre MNB 1148 Painting is the practice of applying paint, pigment, color or other medium to a solid surface (called the "matrix" or "support"). The medium is commonly applied to the base with a brush, but other implements, such as knives, sponges, and ...

Style

The Underworld Painter often exaggerated with decoration, so that the vases are a little overweight. In addition, he sometimes had problems with the representation of faces, so that its people appear grumpy. He strength was with the muscles naked men, which is depicted as taut and body stressing. This is reminiscent of Hellenistic sculptures. However, his painted legs are often quite thin. He attached great importance to some details. He carefully distinguished hair and patterned clothes. The Underworld Painter in his repertoire is less original than the Darius Painter, but he also shows some rarely shown Melanippe stories like the myth of two plays of

. This story has so far not been found on any other vase. Also known from the Berlin Collection of Classical Antiquities is the

Gigantomachy In Greek and Roman mythology, the Giants, also called Gigantes (Greek: Γίγαντες, ''Gígantes'', Γίγας, ''Gígas''), were a race of great strength and aggression, though not necessarily of great size. They were known for the Giganto ...

krater A krater or crater ( grc-gre, , ''kratēr'', literally "mixing vessel") was a large two-handled shape of vase in Ancient Greek pottery and metalwork, mostly used for the mixing of wine with water. Form and function At a Greek symposium, krat ...

, the Priamiden krater and the krater of Persephone). The late work attributed to the artist is seen quite critically and shows a rapid decrease in the skill and quality. It is thought that it was no longer the work of the Underworld Painter, but the other painters of his workshop.

Bibliography

* Arthur Dale Trendall. '' Red-figure vases of South Italy and Sicily. A handbook.'' Philip of Saverne, Mainz, 1991 (Cultural History of the Ancient World Vol 47), esp. p. 115-118 .

External links

Name vase at the Munich, Antikensammlungen
Perseus
Works at the Metropolitan Museum of ArtWork and fragments at the Getty Museum
{{DEFAULTSORT:Underworld Painter 4th-century BC deaths Ancient Greek vase painters Anonymous artists of antiquity People from Apulia Year of birth unknown