Dinos of the Gorgon Painter

About the lecture

In this module, we think about the Dinos of the Gorgon Painter (Louvre E 874), focusing in particular on: (i) the revolution in painted pottery around 700 BC, when pots begin showing human figures in larger scale and in a greater variety of actions, as well as scenes from myth; (ii) the Eleusis Amphora: the subject-matter of the mythological scenes depicted, the strangely ‘geometric’ way in which the Gorgons are depicted, and the connection of the subject-matter to how the pot was actually used; (iii) the Nessos Painter’s Name Vase: the development of the ‘black figure’ style, and the connection of the subject matter to how the pot was actually used; (iv) the Dinos of the Gorgon Painter: the combination of traditional subject-matter (the Gorgon) in a new ritual context (the symposium), and the extent to which to arrangement of the figures in a circle around the neck of the pot reflects the pot’s use as a mixing vessel; and (v) the increasing unfashionability of the Gorgon on painted pottery from the mid-6th century onwards, except in specific contexts (e.g. on warrior’s shields, at the bottom of drinking cups).

Featured pots:
– Dinos of the Gorgon Painter, c. 580 BC. Louvre E 874.
– Oinochoe, attributed to the Workshop of the Painter of Athens 897, c. 720-10 BC. British Museum 1912,0522.1.
– The Burgon lebes, early seventh century BC. British Museum 1842,0728.827.
– The Eleusis Amphora, c. 675-50 BC. Archaeological Museum of Eleusis 2630.
– The Nessos Painter’s Name Vase, late 7th century BC, National Archaeological Museum of Athens 1002.
– Painter of Munich 1410’s Name Vase, c. 510 BC. Staatliche Antikensammlungen, Munich 1410.
– Terracotta kylix attributed to the C Painter, c. 575 BC. Metropolitan Museum of Art 01.8.6

About the lecturer

Robin Osborne is Professor of Ancient History at the University of Cambridge and a Fellow of King’s College, Cambridge and of the British Academy. He works on Greek History (political, social, economic, cultural) and Greek Archaeology (field archaeology and art history) between 1000 B.C. and 200 B.C, and has published extensively across a range of topics.