Detail of a Terracotta Pelike Attributed to the Manner of the Pig Painter in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, October 2011

Terracotta pelike (jar)

Attributed to the manner of the Pig Painter

Period: Classical

Date: ca. 480 B.C.

Culture: Greek, Attic

Medium: Terracotta; red-figure

Dimensions: H. 12 3/16 in. (30.9 cm) diameter of mouth 5 1/8 in. (13 cm) diameter of foot 5 3/8 in. (13.7 cm)

Classification: Vases

Credit Line: Fletcher Fund, 1956

Accession Number: 56.171.43

Description:

Obverse, satyr and the wine god, Dionysos
Reverse, two youths

The painter of this pelike distinguishes himself by his introduction of unusual animals. The lion clearly was not known to the artist firsthand but serves to emphasize the special powers of Dionysos and his followers: the sound of the flute together with the wine makes even a lion tame. The youths on the reverse are accompanied by a Maltese dog.

Text from: www.metmuseum.org/collection/the-collection-online/search/254901