The ''Regina Vasorum'' or ''Queen of Vases'' is a 4th-century BC
hydria
The hydria (; : hydriai) is a form of Greek pottery from between the Geometric art, late Geometric period (7th century BC) and the Hellenistic period (3rd century BC). The etymology of the word hydria was first noted when it was stamped on a ...
from
Cumae
Cumae ( or or ; ) was the first ancient Greek colony of Magna Graecia on the mainland of Italy and was founded by settlers from Euboea in the 8th century BCE. It became a rich Roman city, the remains of which lie near the modern village of ...
depicting
Eleusinian
Elefsina () or Eleusis ( ; ) is a suburban city and municipality in Athens metropolitan area. It belongs to West Attica regional unit of Greece. It is located in the Thriasio Plain, at the northernmost end of the Saronic Gulf. North of Elefsina ...
divinities with
gilded
Gilding is a decorative technique for applying a very thin coating of gold over solid surfaces such as metal (most common), wood, porcelain, or stone. A gilded object is also described as "gilt". Where metal is gilded, the metal below was tradi ...
flesh in
polychrome
Polychrome is the "practice of decorating architectural elements, sculpture, etc., in a variety of colors." The term is used to refer to certain styles of architecture, pottery, or sculpture in multiple colors.
When looking at artworks and ...
relief
Relief is a sculpture, sculptural method in which the sculpted pieces remain attached to a solid background of the same material. The term ''wikt:relief, relief'' is from the Latin verb , to raise (). To create a sculpture in relief is to give ...
. It is held in the collections of the
Hermitage Museum
The State Hermitage Museum ( rus, Государственный Эрмитаж, r=Gosudarstvennyj Ermitaž, p=ɡəsʊˈdarstvʲɪn(ː)ɨj ɪrmʲɪˈtaʂ, links=no) is a museum of art and culture in Saint Petersburg, Russia, and holds the large ...
,
St. Petersburg
Saint Petersburg, formerly known as Petrograd and later Leningrad, is the second-largest city in Russia after Moscow. It is situated on the River Neva, at the head of the Gulf of Finland on the Baltic Sea. The city had a population of 5,601, ...
. In addition to its aesthetic qualities, it is valued as an
iconographical source for
ancient Greek religion
Religious practices in ancient Greece encompassed a collection of beliefs, rituals, and Greek mythology, mythology, in the form of both popular public religion and Cult (religious practice), cult practices. The application of the modern concept ...
.
The ''Regina Vasorum'' is a "spectacular" and unusually large example of technical experimentation among
Greek potters after the
red-figure style had run its course.
[Harvey Alan Shapiro, Carlos A. Picón, Gerry D. Scott, "Introduction to South Italian Vases," in ''Greek Vases'' (San Antonio Museum of Art, 1995), p. 25]
online.
/ref> The figures were made separately, painted, and gilded, then attached to the vase with slip
Slip or The Slip may refer to:
* Slip (clothing), an underdress or underskirt
Music
* The Slip (band), a rock band
* ''Slip'' (album), a 1993 album by the band Quicksand
* ''The Slip'' (album) (2008), a.k.a. Halo 27, the seventh studio al ...
,[ possibly by ]sprigging
Sprigging is the planting of sprigs, plant sections cut from rhizomes or stolons that includes crowns and roots, at spaced intervals in furrows or holes. Depending on the environment, this may be done by hand or with mechanical row planters. Spr ...
.
See also
* South Italian ancient Greek pottery
South Italian is a designation for ancient Greek pottery fabricated in Magna Graecia largely during the 4th century BC. The fact that Greek Southern Italy produced its own red-figure pottery as early as the end of the 5th century BC was first estab ...
B2AC911
Sources
* Elena Ananitch, ''Lucanian Vases'' («L'Erma» di Bretschneider, 2005), p.
online.
* Kevin Clinton, ''Greek Sanctuaries,'' p. 9
online.
* Beth Cohen, ''The Colors of Clay: Special Techniques in Athenian Vases'' (J. Paul Getty Museum, 2006), p. 115.
* Erika Simon, ''Festivals of Attica: An Archaeological Commentary'' (University of Wisconsin Press, 1983), ''passim''.
External links
* Color photo of the ''Regina Vasorum'' at the website of th
Hermitage Museum
References
Ancient Greek pottery
Individual ancient Greek vases
Eleusinian Mysteries
Archaeological collections of the Hermitage Museum
4th-century BC artifacts
{{AncientGreece-stub