Loading, please wait...

Greek Attic Black-Figure Lekythos with Combat Scene Greek Attic Black-Figure Lekythos with Combat Scene Greek Attic Black-Figure Lekythos with Combat Scene Greek Attic Black-Figure Lekythos with Combat Scene Greek Attic Black-Figure Lekythos with Combat Scene Greek Attic Black-Figure Lekythos with Combat Scene Greek Attic Black-Figure Lekythos with Combat Scene Greek Attic Black-Figure Lekythos with Combat Scene Greek Attic Black-Figure Lekythos with Combat Scene
Use mousewheel to zoom in and out, click to enlarge
Details

LOT 0059

Greek Attic Black-Figure Lekythos with Combat Scene

CIRCA 520 B.C.

10 3/8 in. (481 grams, 26.5 cm).

The ovoid body decorated with a combat scene, band of tendrils and leaves to the shoulder and vertical bands to the slender neck, trumpet-shaped mouth, strap handle and discoid foot; the scene comprising three Hoplites, the first in tall-crested Corinthian helmet, cuirass and greaves, xiphos hanging on his right side, thrusting with his long spear over his ellipsoid shield towards the middle figure, running forwards but with his helmetted head turned towards his attacker, using his Boeotian shield to ward off the blow while manoeuvring his own spear which is blocked by the third figure advancing against him, with spear held underarm, with birds in flight above.

Provenance

Private collection, Southern Germany, acquired in 1960s.
with Paul-Francis Jacquier, Numismatique Antique, Münzen und Kunst der Antique, 13 September 2013.
Acquired by the present owner at the above sale.

This lot has been checked against the Interpol Database of stolen works of art and is accompanied by search certificate number no.12189-222313.

Literature

Cf. The Metropolitan Museum, New York, accession number 76.12.4, for similar; for other similar examples Papuci-Władyka, E., Corpus Vasorum Antiquorum, Poland, Fascicule 11, Cracow Fascicule I, Cracow, 2012, pl.43; see also a similar lekythos decorated with warriors in combat at the New Art Gallery Walsall, inventory no.1973.284.GR; for a general bibliography on the Attic Greek black-figure lekythoi see Haspels, C.H.E., Attic Black Figured Lekythoi, Paris, 1936; Beazley, J. D., Attic Black-Figure Vase-Painters, New York, 1978, pp.463-464, 699; Boardman, J., Athenian Black Figure Vases, New York, 1993, pp.114-115, fig.237; also Boardman, J., Les vases athéniens à figures noires, Paris, 1996.

Footnotes

The clothing and weapons of the hoplites are detailed copies of hoplites of late decades of 6th century B.C. The left warrior wears a Corinthian helmet with a high crest, a richly decorated robe and greaves. His round Attic shield, from which a richly pleated chlamys hangs down, is decorated with large circles. The middle and the right hoplite wear Corinthian helmets with a lower crest, and also beautifully decorated robes and greaves. They hold very large, Boeotian-shaped shields with striking bundles of lightning and 'flames'. As a beautiful counterpart to the left fighter, the right warrior carries a chlamys with long folds over his shoulder.

CONDITION
VETTING:

TimeLine Auctions follows a vetting process to ensure the authenticity and legality of all items, reinforcing our commitment to integrity and responsible trading. Each antiquity, antique, and coin lot undergoes thorough examination by a vetting committee of at least ten external specialists, professional trade association members, scientists, and archaeologists: Our Vetting Process


AUCTIONS:

TimeLine is a leading auction house specialising in antiquities, ancient art, collectables, natural history, coins, medals, and books. Our auctions offer museums, collectors, historians, and enthusiasts the opportunity to acquire unique and historically significant pieces.

LOT 0059

Greek Attic Black-Figure Lekythos with Combat Scene

Estimate £25,000 - 35,000€29,000 - 40,600 (for guidance only)$33,750 - 47,250 (for guidance only)

Print page

RELATED LOTS
  • Greek Archaic Painted Terracotta Skyphos
    Lot 0612
    Greek Archaic Painted Terracotta Skyphos
    7th-early 6th century B.C.

    Estimate: £400 - 600 (‡+bp*)

    Opening Bid: £222

    Conical in form with rounded shoulder, everted rim and two round-section handles; painted with concentric bands around the interior and exterior. 243 grams, 15.5 cm wide



    Acquired in Europe before 1992. European collection.

    The skyphos was already well known in Greece since the age of the Achaeans. In Homer, Eumaeus, the swineherd, prepares for his guest Ulysses a cyssibium filled with wine which the hero drinks during the meal and, when he is full, Eumaeus makes him drink from the cup in which he himself was using, a skyphos. Ulysses also offers Polyphemus a drink in a skyphos.

    Lot Details

  • Greek Terracotta Antefix
    Lot 0054
    Greek Terracotta Antefix
    Archaic, 6th-5th century B.C.

    Estimate: £1,000 - 1,400 (‡+bp*)

    Opening Bid: £500

    Mould-made figure of a female upper body with tall headdress and arms spread, hands palm-upwards; beneath, a C-section channel for attachment to a roof. 78 grams, 13.1 cm



    Acquired in the mid 1980s-1990s. Private collection, Switzerland, thence by descent. Private collection, since the late 1990s.

    Lot Details

  • Archaic Cypriot Head of a Male Votary
    Lot 0041
    Archaic Cypriot Head of a Male Votary
    6th century B.C.

    Sold for (Inc. bp): £468

    Fragmentary head from a votive limestone figure of a male with long hair arranged inside a plain diadem above his forehead; the face with almond-shaped eyes sculpted in relief, arched eyebrows, and exhibiting the ‘archaic smile’; mounted on a display block. 381 grams total, 15 cm high including stand



    Ex Professor Hans Dahn (1919-2019), Lausanne, Switzerland.

    Lot Details

Stay up-to-date with the latest from TimeLine Auctions by joining our mailing list