Honors Theses
Date of Award
2006
Document Type
Undergraduate Thesis
Department
Art and Art History
First Advisor
Aileen Ajootian
Relational Format
Dissertation/Thesis
Abstract
The study of Greek painted pottery has the ability to explain many mysteries surrounding ancient Athens. The University of Mississippi is home to a large collection of these archaeological jewels, many of which have not been thoroughly studied. An Attic white ground pyxis is one unpublished vessel, which before now, has never been carefully examined. The purpose of this study was to examine all aspects of this piece, which include the shape, artists, and iconography. Such attributes were studied through the analysis of ancient texts, previous scholarship on shape and iconography, and a close comparison of two artists’ hands. A comprehensive catalogue of the damage and figures residing on the pyxis is also included, so that one understands every angle of the piece. Each facet of the study produced many questions concerning the pyxis. Inquiries such as the identity of the artist, the purpose of the unique flat bottom of the vessel, the strange martial iconography residing on a shape associated with women and commonly found in female graves, as well as what might have inspired such a ferocious scene are also tackled. Once the figures were identified as Amazons, it was imperative to research and explain their identity in Athenian society to understand how the owner of the vessel would have viewed them. Research on all the said questions suggested that the artist of the pyxis was the Penthesilea or Sotheby painter, that the unusual iconography might have been inspired by family accomplishments or other vase shapes, and that the pyxis could have been inspired by the Amazonomachy panel painting in the Painted Stoa, a building located in the Athenian Agora. Research on the Amazons solidified a terminus date, which placed the pyxis after the Persian wars (early fifth century) ante quern because of weapons and costume of the Amazon. It was concluded that the Robinson pyxis was indeed a work of the Sotheby painter and represented an Amazonomachy. Although it was not certain, the evidence suggests that this piece might be a copy of a painting depicting Theseus’ defense of Athens by the artist Mikon from the Painted Stoa.
Recommended Citation
Carrillo, Heather Ryanne, "Putting the Pieces Together: The mystery surrounding an Attic Pyxis from the University of Mississippi Robinson Collection" (2006). Honors Theses. 1964.
https://egrove.olemiss.edu/hon_thesis/1964
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