Description

This Attic White Ground kylix of the early 5th century BC has a most distinctive depiction of the Apollo. The god wears a white sleeveless chiton, which is fastened with pins at the shoulders, and a red himation wrapped around the lower part of his body. He sits on a cross-legged stool. A myrtle wreath garnishes his carelessly bound hair. He performs a libation by pouring wine out of a bowl with his right hand, while holding a seven-stringed lyre, whose sound-box is made of a turtle-shell, in his left hand. A raven looks on. This scene could allude to the myth of King Phlegyas’s daughter Koronida (from the Greek korone = raven), who was in love with Apollo, although some scholars believe it is simply a bird with prophetic powers. These colourful figures on a white background are typical of Attic vase-painting of the early 5th century BC. This kylix is the work of an unknown artist, which some scholars identify with the so-called Berlin painter.