Exekias Kylix
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Name – Exekias Kylix
Made – 535 BC
Size – 30.5 cm
Potter – Exekias
Painter – Exekias
Exekias signed the front face of the foot “Exekias epoiēsen” – “Exekias
made (me)”
 Exekias tended to paint the pots he potted, this is why there is usually only
one name on an ‘Exekias’ vase.
Shape
 Vase shape - Exekias introduced new shape and so it was called ‘A type’. It
has a shallow bowl with plain lip and a splaying foot offset from the bowl
 Use – It was a cup for drinking wine, most probably at the Symposium
 Exekias invented this shape
 This Kylix was a new type of cup in Exekias’ time, it is distinguished by the
absence of an offset rim
 The central interior, which is decorated is called a tondo
Lip of the cup
Handle
The foot
Front face
of the foot
Scene
You can tell the figure in the centre of the scene is Dionysus in two ways
i) The wine horn in his hand
ii) The twin vines, heavy with clusters of grapes
 Dionysus is the god of ecstasy, festivals, celebration, grape harvest, wine
making and wine as well as inspiring joyful worship. This relates to the
vase as it was specifically used for drinking
wine
 As you drank from the vase it would give
you the illusion that the boat was floating
 The background is a coral red slip and it is
meant to resemble wine and the wine
dark sea of the Mediterranean
 Mood – Dionysus has reclined in his boat.
The scene looks serene, almost as if
he is on a peaceful journey and joined by
his maenads and satyrs
 The character is very typical of Exekias
– he prefers to choose quiet moments in an otherwise lively narrative
The myth
 Some Tyrrhenian pirates were sailing by when they spotted Dionysus on
the shore. They grabbed him and attempted to imprison him, Dionysus
with them peacefully and sat on the ship, watching the pirates. Suddenly,
he showed his divine power. Wine flowed over the boat and a vine sprung
up over the mast. The god became a lion and roared at them. The pirates
fled with fear and all jumped into the sea, where Dionysus transformed
them into dolphins
 Based on Homer’s story “Hymn to Dionysos”
 Alternative ending? Only key words such as “sailors” instead of pirates
(really can’t find one)
Painting Technique
 Exekias was the greatest and most advanced of the black-figure master
painters from his time
 Exekias created a new slip called a red coral slip, it was created by mixing
yellow ochre and a black slip (revolutionary)
 Unfortunately the coral red did not adhere well with the surface of the clay
so the technique was later abandoned
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Dionysus –
Silhouette: The figure is flat and shows no
volume. Although Dionysus is reclining he still
seems stiff and uncomfortable. Back ache,
dislocated shoulders
Incised detail: Dionysus’ robe is decorated
with small incised crosses
Added colour: White is added to the sail and
purple (even though you can’t see it) is added to the grapes
Nb. Black slip was added thicker than usual which gives added depth and
texture
Continued..
 Exekias added purple to accentuate the grapes and
the overall colour of the interior
 The grapes have been carefully incised to display
individual grapes
Exterior
Silhouette: The three figures have been lined up
besides each other in order to try and create depth,
they are all in unison and again seem “stiff” with their
postures
Incised detail: The warriors wear the Corinthian style
helmets, incised with details showing horse hair crests
(as well as having incised corselets and greaves)
Added colour: Exekias has added purple to
accentuate the armours of the warriors. However he
hasn’t coloured the man in between in order to
possibly vary the warriors and add depth with colour
These are typical figures of Exekias as all his
characters are decorated with fine incised detail,
showing almost every hair. He also uses added colour
Exterior
The myth
 The dead warrior is Patroclus, Achilles’ best friend who died fighting the
Trojans. He has put on Achilles’ armour and gone to fight but was then killed
by Hector. A battle ensued over his body. Eventually his armour was stolen by
Hector before the body was recovered by the Greeks
 Armour was the prize of the victors
 There is slight variations between the two sides. On each side under the root
of the handles are two groups of three armed warriors fighting over a corpse
- On one side the corpse has been stripped and is in the process of being
dragged away
- On the other side the dead warrior still lies fully armed, filling the vacant
space underneath the handles.
Exterior
 There are 2 pairs of apotropaic eyes painted in black and purple to
exaggerated tear ducts and there is a stylized nose. This is why it has a
common nickname
 The Exekias Kylix has two large eyes on each side of the exterior of the
cup, and is often referred to as the “eye cup”
- These ‘eyes’ were supposed to be magical. When you drink your eyes are
hidden and a pair of ‘apotropaic’ eyes look out for you. They were to ward
off evil
- They also could have formed a humorous theatrical mask when the
drinker raised the cup to his face
Composition - Exterior
 Exekias has created an intricate series of
patterns to accentuate the shape of the
bowl
 The dead warrior fills the empty space
beneath each handle, Patroclus’ body
curves outwards to the same shape of
the cup
 The three warriors on each side show a
balance of symmetry
 Upper half of the warriors fills the space
between the eyes and the handles
 The bottom of their bodies fills the
space under the handles and under the
eyes
 The curving eyes with their circular
pupils' compliment the shape of the
vase
Composition - Interior
Composition - Interior
 Normally painters only painted the
centre of the cup
 The scene occupies the whole
tondo in a free field. It is bounded
by the rim of the cup
 The curve of the bottom of the boat
complements the circular shape of
the vase
 The boat is the centre of the tondo
and is the focal point
 Both the vines in the 1/3 space of
the vase and the dolphins in the 2/3
of the outside of the circle
complement the shape and curve of
the vase