Krater

M10711

Information

Krater, decorated in the red-figure technique. This is an example of a 'phlyax vase'', a type of pottery which depicts a scene including a an actor, known as a phlyax, who wears a characteristic padded costume and grotesque mask. Side A depicts the phlyax actor with Dionysos, holding a bird in his right hand. Dionysos is depicted here as the god of theatre. Side b shows two draped youths. Trendall notes that the mask is his 'Type B', showing a male with a good head of hair, a short beard and open mouth. This is one of the masks most frequently used on phylax vases. In his extensive research, Trendall noted 185 phylax pots, the majority of which are Apulian and only 30 Paestan. Trendall attributed M10711 to the pot painter Python, one of only two known named South Italian pot painters.