Ancient Greece, Athens, Early Attic, ca. 6th century BCE. A very large and incredibly fine black-figure neck amphora of an exceptionally elegant, classic form - both sides expertly painted with mesmerizing mythological scenes. Side A features Herakles shrouded in the hide of the Nemean Lion, whilst carrying a club and a bow, and being ushered to the right by Athena with 2 figures following behind him. Alternatively, side B displays a pair of warriors carrying shields flanked by a male and female figure wearing robes. Adding to the piece is the rich decorative program: the register of stylized palmettes adorning the neck; bands of tongue motifs just below; symmetrical floral vines below each tripartite handle; and beneath the pictorial imagery a register of fine-line, stylized laurel buds with looping stems followed by rays emerging from the base below. Size: 11" in diameter x 18" H (27.9 cm x 45.7 cm)

Displaying immense physical strength and courage, Herakles' adventures in the Greco-Roman world were narrated in the canonical Twelve Labors, the first occurring when King Eurystheus asked Herakles to bring him the skin of a fierce lion that terrorized the hillside around Nemea - a seemingly impossible task. Despite the fact that initially Herakles' arrows were utterly useless against this threatening beast, our hero ultimately succeeded, clutching the lion in his muscular arms all the while strategically avoiding its claws, finally choking the wild feline to death. The story of Hercules and the Nemean Lion was retold over and over again, in plays and artistic depictions like painting on vases, as shown here.

Ancient Athenian painters, including the painter of this vessel, took advantage of the large size of Attic vases which gave them more room to explore their techniques, overlap figures, present complex interactions between figures, create depth and attempt renderings of perspective.

This example has been published as number 7103 in the Beazley Archive Pottery Database (BAPD) at the University of Oxford. It was also listed and sold by Sotheby's New York as lot 200 in their "Important Antiquities" auction on December 9th 1981, during which it was estimated to hammer for $18,000 to $24,000 (about $52,920 to $70,560 today).

This piece has been searched against the Art Loss Register database and has been cleared. The Art Loss Register maintains the world’s largest database of stolen art, collectibles, and antiques.

Provenance: private Corpus Christi, Texas, USA estate collection; ex-Sotheby's, New York, "Important Antiquities" auction (December 9th, 1981, Lot 200)

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#165109

Body repaired from several pieces with restoration. Break lines visible on interior of rim. Chips to rim and some abrasions to body. Some repainting in areas. Otherwise, excellent.