Amphora of Hermonax in Würzburg facts for kids
The Amphora of Hermonax in Würzburg is a neck amphora which was made by the early classical Attic vase painter Hermonax in the red figure style of Greek vase painting around 450 BC. The amphora was found in an Etruscan grave in Vulci. Originally kept in the Feoli collection, it now belongs to the antiquity collection of the Martin von Wagner Museum in Würzburg, where it is on display with a lid which probably does not belong to it.
Description
Both the execution of the potter's work and the imagery are typical for vases of this period. There are hundreds of slight variations of the theme of the arming scene depicted on the amphora. However, the painting on this amphora, which was attributed to Hermonax by John Beazley, is of a higher quality than most depictions of this theme.
On the front there is a young woman, who helps a young man to arm himself. Both wear only a chiton; normally the young man would also have a two-part shirt and skirt. While the young man stoops slightly to put on his sword (though it was normal to put the greaves on first), the woman passes him his helmet, which has moveable cheek-plates and face plate. She also hold his round shield, which has the emblem of a snake on it as an emblem. Body armour, greaves, and spear are absent. Since the Persian Wars, the items were common for Athenian hoplites. Although at the time when the vase was created the Athenian fleet was acquiring an ever more significant part in Athenian warfare, the hoplite remained the ideal citizen in arms and was depicted in an idealised form for a long time. Also, long hair was no longer in fashion at the time of the creation of the vase and referred back to the Late Archaic, heroic period of the Persian Wars.
See also
In Spanish: Ánfora de Hermonacte en Wurzburgo para niños
