Terracotta neck-amphora (jar) with twisted handles

Lykaon Painter

An item at Metropolitan Museum of Art

Obverse, Neoptolemos departing Reverse, man and two women The magnificent decoration here depicts the departure of a warrior for combat; every figure is identified by name. Kalliope, the woman with the oinochoe (jug) and phiale (libation bowl), and Antimachos, the man holding the shield and helmet, define the immediate subject. At the same time, the seated man, Antiochos, who clasps his son's hand, and the general tenor of the representation have direct counterparts on grave stelai. The funerary overtones are emphasized by the palmette on the neck—equivalent to the palmette finials on marble stelai.

Greek and Roman Art

An exhibit at Metropolitan Museum of Art

The Museum's collection of Greek and Roman art comprises more than thirty thousand works ranging in date from the Neolithic period (ca. 4500 B.C.) to the time of the Roman emperor Constantine's conversion to Christianity in A.D. 312. It includes the art of many cultures and is among the most comprehensive in North America. The geographic regions represented are Greece and Italy, but not as delimited by modern political frontiers: Greek colonies were established around the Mediterranean basin and on the shores of the Black Sea, and Cyprus became increasingly Hellenized. For Roman art, the geographical limits coincide with the expansion of the Roman Empire. The department also exhibits the art of prehistoric Greece (Helladic, Cycladic, and Minoan) and pre-Roman art of Italic peoples, notably the Etruscans.

Metropolitan Museum of Art