AN ATTIC RED-FIGURED ASKOS

CIRCA LATE 5TH CENTURY B.C.

Details

AN ATTIC RED-FIGURED ASKOS
CIRCA LATE 5TH CENTURY B.C.
Of broad lentoid form with arching handle and flaring spout, one side with the figure of a cowering Giant, possibly Porphyrion, wearing belted tunic, cuirass, and a high-crested helmet, his genitals exposed, holding a spear and shield, the other side with Zeus' winged thunderbolt
4 in. (10.3 cm.) long

Provenance

Private collection, France.
Anonymous sale; Chochon-Barre & Allardi, Drouot Richelieu, 23 June 2000.
with Charles Ede Ltd, London.
Titchener collection, England, acquired from the above in 2001.
with Charles Ede Ltd, London.
Prof. H.-H. Heissmeyer collection, Schwäbisch Hall, acquired from the above in 2010 (inv. no. 50).

Literature

Vases, 2015, p. 79, no. 25.

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Georgiana Aitken

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Lot Essay

The Gigantomachy, the battle for supremacy between the Giants and the Olympians, ended in the former's vanquishing. The defeated Giants were said to be buried under the earth, and were the cause of volcanic eruptions and earthquakes. The thunderbolt is one of the attributes of Zeus, given to him by the Cyclopes in thanks for releasing them from Tartarus.

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