The Cleveland Museum of Art

Collection Online as of March 29, 2024

Red-Figure Squat Lekythos (Oil Vessel): Birth of Erichthonios

Red-Figure Squat Lekythos (Oil Vessel): Birth of Erichthonios

c. 420–410 BCE

attributed to Meidias Painter

(Greek, Attic, active c. 420–400 BCE)
Diameter: 18.6 cm (7 5/16 in.); Diameter of mouth: 8.7 cm (3 7/16 in.); Overall: 30.3 cm (11 15/16 in.); Diameter of foot: 14.5 cm (5 11/16 in.)
Location: 102B Greek

Did You Know?

A lead rivet sits at the junction of handle and neck, probably an ancient repair.

Description

The central group on this vase shows the seated earth goddess Ge (also known as Gaia) handing her baby, Erichthonios, to Athena. Conceived from the seed of Hephaistos, Erichthonios would go on to become a king of Athens, and the story of his birth became popular in Athenian art of the fifth century BC. Other representations include Hephaistos as well as Kekrops, the mythical first king of Athens, sometimes together with Zeus and other deities. But this one includes only female onlookers—likely the three daughters of Kekrops watching from above, with Aphrodite and several abstract personifications such as Peitho (Persuasion) and Eudaimonia (Happiness) standing and seated nearby.
  • 1982-
    The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH
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    Antikenmuseum, Basel (before 1982).
  • {{cite web|title=Red-Figure Squat Lekythos (Oil Vessel): Birth of Erichthonios|url=false|author=Meidias Painter|year=c. 420–410 BCE|access-date=29 March 2024|publisher=Cleveland Museum of Art}}

Source URL:

https://www.clevelandart.org/art/1982.142