Euthymides

Shape: Belly amphora Use: Two-handled Greek vase with a swollen belly, narrow neck, and a large mouth. In antiquity an amphora was often used by the ancient Greeks and Romans to transport wine, oil and honey. Some amphorae have pointy bottoms. Painter: Euthymides Potter: Unknown Technique: Red Figure (relief lines, black and dilute brown, washes of dilute) Date: BC Inscriptions: His works was normally inscribed “Euthymides painted me”. As Euthymides was a rival of Euphronios, and one of his amphorae is additionally marked with the playful taunt “hos oudepote Euphronios”, roughly interpreted as “as never Euphronios [could do]”, or “this wasn't one of Euphronios”.

Dimensions Height: 60cm Diameter of neck: 29.7cm

Side A: Arming of Hector

Priam Priam has been presented by the artist with a bald head and stubbly beard and is wrapped up tightly in his cloak. He holds his knobbed stick in his left hand and makes gestures while speaking with his right hand, as if he is offering Hector some advice. Between the figures of Priam and Hector the artist has written ‘Egraspen Euthymide ho poliou’ – Euthymides the son of Pollias painted me’.

The Trojan hero, Hector, is in the centre of the frieze, preparing himself for the battle with Achilles. He is putting on his leather corselet over his short chiton (tunic). He already wears his metal greaves. His shield, with a satyr's head as device, is shown leaning up against his mother, Hecuba. Hector This scene probably represents the final farewell between Priam, Hector, and Hecuba.

Pose Hector’s pose still looks unrealistic and awkward, but Euthymides is experimenting with foreshortening, and mixing frontal with profile figures. Hector’s body is painted in frontal view. This means his left foot has to be foreshortened. However, his head and his right leg are shown in profile.

The Myth Hector, son of King Priam of Troy, was the greatest of the Trojan warriors. He led the Trojans in the Trojan War, since Priam was too old to fight. Hector killed Patroclus, and Achilles met Hector in a crucial scene in “The Iliad”. After killing many Greeks he was killed himself by Achilles, before dragging his body from the back of his chariot around Patroclus’ tomb, every day for 12 days. With Hector’s death, the fall of Troy was close at hand.

Queen Hecuba stands at the right of the frieze, holding Hector’s spear. She is dressed in a long chiton and himation. She holds Hector’s helmet ready above his head. In an interesting move, the raised helmet actually disrupts the upper band of decoration framing the panel. Hecuba

Drapery The stiff folds at the back of Priam’s cloak. The loose folds in Hecuba’s chiton and himation. There is a mixture of stiff, unrealistic-looking drapery and loose, flowing folds in light cloth.

Composition This palmette decorative band runs around the top of the frieze, but is interrupted by Hectors’ raised helmet. This shows Euthymides’ skill in composition.

Inscriptions Euthymides signs himself seven times, including three times as “Euthymides, son of Pollias the sculptor”. All figures on the vase are named. He also named several contemporaries on the vase, including Megakles, who was apparently “beautiful”. Euthymides’ most famous inscription - “hos oudepote Euphronios”, roughly interpreted as “as never Euphronios [could do]”, or “this wasn't one of Euphronios” is a sign of a friendly rivalry.

Some even considered the inscription to be a cry of jealousy. More recently it has been suggested that the words mean something like “Euphronios never revelled like us”, since the three figures on this side of the vases are Komasts. Whether the words indicate occupational rivalry or a humorous taunt, they demonstrate again the close personal and professional interrelationships of the Pioneer vase-painters. Euthymides made more inscriptions than Euphronios.

Side B: Three Drunken Revelers

The Three Revellers is probably Euthymides’ most famous work - an amphora depicting three men partying. They are presumably drunk; one of them is drinking straight from a kantharos, a vessel normally reserved for mixing wine and water. This scene depicts three large bearded men dancing drunkenly across the vase. All the revellers are naked except for a small cloak, which they carry draped around their shoulders, and a wreath of vine leaves.

The mood of this frieze is happy, as 3 drunken revellers return from the symposium Komarchos Eudemos Teles

Komarchos Holding a kantharos (wine cup). Three quarter pose. Note profile position, head and legs with chest that is not fully frontal. Pupil of eye at end of oval eye. Three merrymaking Komasts, from left to right Komarchos holding a kantharos

Eudemos Also spelt Eueduemos. Shoulders foreshortened. Accurate depiction of twisted torso, waving his knotted staff in the air. Dilute lines for detail. All of the figures show foreshortening. The most extreme being Eudemos, whose shoulder blades have been foreshortened realistically. Eudemos (named between his legs).

Teles Pecs foreshortened. Like Komarchos’ head and legs profile. Collar bones hooked. Muscles in dilute slip. First accurate attempt to show movement and mood. Teles whose pose and gestures suggest dancing to song. The large nude bodies use minimal drapery to highlight their poses: the painter writes as never Euphronios.

Purple wreaths Purple is used for the inscriptions, wreaths, fillet in Hector's hair and the stripes on the body of the vase. Outline of hair incised in all the figures except that of Priam where it is reserved. Anatomical details and drapery in faint lines.

This wine jug shows three tipsy Greek men. Euthymides experimented with a new way of portraying the human body. Each figure is drawn independently and instead of being two-dimensional, they are seen at a 3/4 view. For example, we can only see the buttocks, back, and front of the head of the center figure. We are not able to see the main human form because of this perspective.

Pose Teles is frontal with a face in profile. Komarchos stands in profile with ¾ torso. Eudemos has profile right leg, ¾ buttocks, profile shoulders and face – not a stationary position.

Drapery The drapery on these figures is purely decorative. The folds of the cloth hang loose in zigzag folds.

Both sides of the vase show 3 figures, a composition typical for Euthymides. This provides a balance on both friezes, but also allows him to contrast different poses on either side.

Composition The main friezes are bordered on all sides: Enclosed red- figure palmettes. Linked black-figure pomegranates. Stylised black- figure buds. Ray bands around the base. Handles are decorated with ivy leaves. Euedemos’ walking stick interrupts the upper border.

The borders of the frieze follow the contours of the shoulder of the vase, and line up with the handles.

REALISM This is a Red-Figure vase, so details are painted on, not incised. This allows the artist to show more complex poses and a more realistic scene is possible. Euthymides uses dilute slip to show glaze to show anatomical details and the muscle groups. He even uses dark slip for major muscles, and lighter slip for small ones. The accuracy shown here suggests he actually observed live models. This was new! LIMITATIONS TO REALISM No overlapping There is no attempt at background, just black glaze. The figures stand on a single groundline, giving no depth. Red figure is far more capable of giving an illusion of volume and depth than the flat silhouette of black figure, yet Euthymides does not exploit this.

Euthymides Euthymides was an ancient Athenian potter and painter of vases, primarily active between 515 and 500 BC. He was a member of the Greek art movement later to be known as "The Pioneers" for their exploration of the new decorative style known as red- figure pottery. Euthymides was the teacher of another Athenian red-figure vase painter, the Kleophrades Painter. Euthymides was admired for his portrayal of human movement and studies of perspective, his painted figures being amongst the first to show foreshortened limbs. He was more minimalist than others in the movement, and his tendency was to draw relatively few figures, and only rarely overlap them. Euthymides figures rarely have eyelashes or loose ringlets and have simpler ears, long flat feet, and rubbery fingers. This wine jug shows three tipsy Greek men. Euthymides experimented with a new way of portraying the human body. Each figure is drawn independently and instead of being two-dimensional, they are seen at a 3/4 view. For example, we can only see the buttocks, back, and front of the head of the center figure. We are not able to see the main human form because of this perspective.