Terracotta lekythos (oil flask)

Providence Painter

An item at Metropolitan Museum of Art

On the body, Artemis. On the shoulder, Nike The Providence Painter, one of the most gifted followers of the Berlin Painter, specialized in small shapes, notably Nolan amphorae (jars) and lekythoi. On this work he depicts Artemis, the sister of Apollo and goddess of the hunt. Drawing an arrow from her quiver, she hastens forward, about to shoot. The fawn running beside her is present not only as an attribute but also as an indication of the goddess's swiftness. On the shoulder of the vase, Nike—a personification of victory—is shown in flight, adding further to this display of the human form and female dress in motion.

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