Art 230: Ancient Art Digital Exhibits

Stealstone (Lentoid)

1600-1400 BCE

Octopus Flask

1500-1450 BCE The Octopus Flask is an example of Minoan New Palace Period pottery. Made to celebrate the sea, this Kamares Ware jug is covered in decoration of marine life.The jug is round with a small opening at the top and has two small...

Bronze Statuette of a Veiled and Masked Dancer

3rd - 2nd Century B.C.E. Image Source: metmuseum.org

Head and neck from a marble figure

2700–2500 B.C.

Bronze Group of a Bull and Acrobat

1700-1450 BCE The Minoan Bull Leaper, or Bronze Group of a Bull and Acrobat, is a small representation of a Minoan ritualistic activity. Bull-leaping is a frequently shown and dangerous act that has been represented in different mediums in...

Upper part of a marble female figure

2300–2200 B.C.

Seated Harp Player

c. 2800-2700 BCE Slight discolorations on legs, loss of paint that once adorned the head The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York City This sculpture, featuring a harpist, is one of the first depictions of a musician that there is. Seated...

Red-figure Calyx Krater; A: Nike and Poseidon; B: Woman and Old Man

ca. 470 B.C. Image from Yale University Art Gallery. http://artgallery.yale.edu/collections/objects/2565

Vapheio Cups of Tholos

1500-1450 BCE

Bull-leaping Gold Minoan Signet Ring

1700 BCE

Agate Lentoid

1500-1450 BCE

Wedding of Zeus and Hera

460-450 BCE Image from Art Resource http://www.artres.com/C.aspx?VP3=ViewBox_VPage&VBID=2UN365C56DB6A&IT=ZoomImageTemplate01_VForm&IID=2UN86I6BPKIX&PN=2&CT=Search&SF=0

Horns of Consecration

2000-1450 BCE

Zeus Carrying Off Ganymedes

Terracotta Vase in the Form of a Bull's Head

1450-1400 BCE

Terracotta statuette of Nike, the personification of victory

Ivory Figurine of a Bull Leaper

1600-1500 BCE

Bull's Head Rhyton

The Bull’s Head Rhyton, 12” from the Little Palace at Knossos, dated 1450-1400 BCE, is nothing but spectacular. Even though this is one of the most famous finds from Sir Arthur Evan’s excavations of Crete in 1900, there is still some...

Attic Red-figure Bell Krater; Death of Aktaion

The Mourning Athena

Artemision Zeus or Poseidon

Dermys and Kittylos

580 BC

Samos Kore

570-560 BC

Volomandra Kouros

570-560 BC

Doryphoros

Copy c. 120-50 BCE Original c. 550 BCE

Artemision Zeus

c. 460 BCE

Diadoumenos

Copy c. 69-96 CE Original c. 430 BCE

Marble Funerary Kouros

c. 510-500 BCE

Marble Statue of a Wounded Warrior

Copy c. 138-181 CE Original c. 460-450 BCE

Terracotta Beaked Jug

1700-1600 BCE

Terracotta Side-Spouted Jug

2600-2400 BCE

Terracotta Vase in the Form of a Bull's Head

1450-1400 BCE

Minoan Vase in Floral Style

1550-1100 BCE

Stone Vase Shaped Like a Flower

1700-1450 BCE

Ceramic Pitcher

Unknown

Marine Style Vase

1500 BCE

Bronze Youth

Classical Greek (late 5th century BCE) Figure’s right foot missing, tarnishing The Metropolitan Museum of Art Artists for centuries have looked back to the works of Ancient Greece as the high point of human artistic creation. The Romans...

Statuette of an Athlete

4th Century BCE

Victorious Athlete Offering a Libation

c. 470 BCE

Glass gold-band mosaic perfume bottle

first century BCE Dulling of the glass, tarnishing, and slight chipping The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York City This very small, hollow glass vessel is a beautiful example of the extreme craftsmanship of the Greeks during the...

Aphrodite of Knidos

350 BCE

Weary Herakles

Mosaic in the House of the Single Column

3. Marble Female Figure

2300–2200 B.C.

The Stag Hunt by Gnosis, Pella Mosaic (Late 4th Century BCE)

In the transition to the Hellenistic Period, Greece was under the rule of the Macedonian leader, Alexander the Great. Artistically, he merged the two styles together to create a complimentary technique in designing the houses of the town...

The Lion Hunt, Pella Mosaic (325-300 BCE)

Dionysus

Date: c. 460 B.C. Through the use of Greek myth, sculptures and artists of ancient Greece attempted to personify the gods and goddesses in the mythological narratives. These portrayals were often filled with iconographic clues to explain...

4. Marble Female Figure

2600–2400 B.C.

Meander Mosaic in Attalos II-Palace of Pergamon (ca. 150 BCE)

Eleusis Neck-Amphora

The Eleusis Neck-Amphora is a prime example of Protoattic Oriental period Greek pottery. Though the large 650 BCE black and white figure vessel is greatly damaged, the visible narratives show us an important development in style. Fired in...

The Seated Boxer

100-50 B.C.E. The Hellenistic period in Greek art and architecture falls around 323-31 B.C.E. It is called the Hellenistic period because this time “witnessed the dissemination of Greek and Macedonian ideas throughout what had been...

5. Marble Female Figure

3200–2800 B.C.

Marble head from the figure of a woman

2700–2500 B.C.

Ganymede Abducted by Zeus' Eagle in House of Ganymede (3rd Century BCE)

Hellenic Greek Ship Mosaic (1st Century BC)

Marble male figure

2400–2300 B.C.

Detail of Mosaic from Palace V, Pergamon (Mid 2nd Century BC)

Mosaic in the House III N of the Theatre Quarter, Delos (Late 2nd/Early 1st Century BC)

Riace Warriors

Date: 460-450 B.C.E. The Riace Warriors represent a culmination of the Early Classical style. “The statues were discovered by Stefano Mariottini in the Mediterranean Sea just off the coast of Riace Marina, Italy, on August 16, 1972. The...

1. Marble Female Figure

2700–2600 B.C. Marble Female Figure is an example of the Spedos style of figure from Early Cycladic art. Her left arm is crossed over her right, her oval face tilts back and up, there is a sense of elongation of her body, and she is...

Stirrup Jar with Octopus (ca. 1200-1100 BC)

On the face of this Late Helladic Mycenaean (ca. 1200-1100 B.C.) vessel is a large, wide-eyed octopus stretching its tentacles across the vase’s bulging sides, as if attempting to connect itself on the other side. The spiraling ends of its...

Apollo Sauroktonos (Apollo the Lizard Slayer)

350-340 BCE

Bull-Leaping Fresco (ca. 1450-1400 BC)

Bull-Leaping Fresco The Bull-Leaping Fresco is a distinguishable work significant to Minoan culture by its vivid colors and curvilinear shapes that bring a liveliness and vitality to the scenes. The artists of this period are skilled in...

Fisherman of Aphrodisias

3rd-2nd Century BC

Elgin Marbles

447-438 B.C.E. The Elgin Marbles have been a subject of dispute for years now and have “attracted enormous attention from scholars and the public, mainly because of its involvement in the politics of restitution of cultural heritage.”[1...

Attic Red-Figure Calyx Krater

ca. 485-480 B.C. The red figure calyx krater is representation of4th and 5th century BCE Greek vessels. A particularly beautiful example is the early 5th century BCE Attic red figure calyx krater by the Cleophrades Painter, currently...

1. Figures in Cycladic Art

Figures in Cycladic Art By Celia Romani Cycladic figures come from a grouping of islands known as the Cyclades located in the Aegean Sea. The name derives from the Greek word for circle, kyklos, as the Ancient Greeks believed they formed a...

Kore from Delos

640 BC The Kore from Delos is an example of a type of kouros or kore sculpture popular during the Geometric, Orientalizing, and Archaic periods of Greek art. A kore statue is the female version of a kouros statue, kouros meaning youth...

1. Hellenistic Greek Mosaics

Hellenistic Greek Mosaics By Jordan Wolfe The Hellenistic period is a time of great development for the artistic invention of mosaics, as well as the prosperity of the Greek people. The beautiful and expensive display of cut cubes...

1. Hellenistic Bronze Statuary

Hellenistic Bronze Statuary By Catherine Olson The fall of Alexander the Great in 323 B.C.E marks the beginning of the Hellenistic age, which concludes in 31 B.C.E.[1] During this time, there was a rise in individual portraiture...

Painted Plaster Reproduction of a Minoan Marine-style Terracotta Vase from Egypt

1925-26 Marine style, as shown in this piece, is a common style of Minoan pottery. It is characterized by detailed and naturalistic depictions of marine life,1 in this piece coral, sponges, and seaweed. Minoan culture was centered on the...

2. Marble Female Figure

4500-4000 BCE This marble figurine is from the earliest days of art production in the Cycladic Islands. She is classified as part of the steatopygous type--a voluptuous, full-bodied female figure universally accepted to have associations...

Colossal Figure from the north side of the Mausoleum at Halicarnassus

350 BCE

Loutrophoros depicting Pelops and Hippodameia in a chariot

320-310 BCE

Cult Statue of Unknown Goddess

425-400 BCE

1. The Male Figure in High Classical Greek Art: Striving for Perfection

The Male Figure in High Classical Greek Art: Striving for Perfection By Jackson Goode Ancient Greece is one of the most powerful civilizations to have ever existed, and despite being long gone, the impact of their societies are still felt...

Hellenistic Ruler

c. 150 B.C.E. Image Source: ancient.eu

Eros Asleep

150-100 B.C.E. Image Source: metmuseum.org

Bronze Statuette of Aphrodite

150-100 B.C.E. Image Source: metmuseum.org

Nanny Goat Statuette

Late 2nd Century B.C.E. Image Source: clevelandart.org

Bronze Statuette of a Horse

Late 2nd - 1st Century B.C.E. Image Source: metmuseum.org

Bronze Statuette of a Man

Mid 2nd - 1st Century B.C.E. Image Source: metmuseum.org

The Dipylon Amphora

760-750 BC

Bronze statuette of Athena flying her owl

ca. 460 B.C. Athena was the Greek goddess of wisdom and strategy. This statuette of Athena raises an arm to fly her owl. The owl is Athena’s sacred animal; Athena could be the reason why owls are associated with knowledge. She wears a...

Funerary Krater

750-735 B.C

Diskobolos

450 B.C The word “Diskobolos” means discus thrower in Greek. The Diskobolos statue, by Myron, shows a nude athlete throwing a discus. The discus throw was an event in the Pentathlon in the Olympics.[1] The Diskobolos is from the year 450...

1. Greek Gods and Goddesses from the Early Classical Period

Greek Gods and Goddesses from the Early Classical Period By Sabine Schmalbeck The theme of this exhibition is Greek Gods and Goddesses from the Early Classical period. The Early Classical period, also called the Period of Transition...

Bronze statuette of Aphrodite with silver eyes

3rd–1st century B.C. This bronze statuette with silver eyes depicts the goddess Aphrodite. Aphrodite’s left hand reaches to grab the fallen fabric or to cover herself while she turns her head to look at the apple in her other hand. This...

1. Minoan Anthropomorphic Vases

N/A

Phrasikleia Kore

550-540 B.C. The Archaic kouros and kore are one of the most iconic pieces of archeological evidence from this period. These sculptures exhibit the beginning interest in human naturalism and the relationship between the drapery and body...

Kore from Delos (Nikandre)

640 BC The Kore from Delos is an example of a type of kouros or kore sculpture popular during the Geometric, Orientalizing, and Archaic periods of Greek art. A kore statue is the female version of a kouros statue, kouros meaning youth...

Loutrophoros

690 BC

Four Horses

2nd century AD Great political strife and turmoil can unfortunately lead to the appropriation and relocation of cultural art pieces. War and chaos breed the perfect opportunity for the theft of art, as art becomes the perfect token of...

Artemision Horse and Jockey

150-140 BCE Horse and Jockey In the fall of 1928, the fragmentary bronze statues of a horse, a boy, and a god were retrieved from a sunken ship near Cape Artemision.[1] After much study and restoration, the horse and boy were paired...

Alexander Sarcophagus

320 BCE Alexander Sarcophagus While many countries adamantly lobby for the return of their national treasures, Turkey is widely considered to have the most extreme repatriation demands.[1] While many people understand Turkey’s desire for...

1. Art Worth Fighting For: Repatriation in Late Classical Greek Art

Art Worth Fighting For By Adi Coe On a Turkish peninsula, stretching out into the waters where the Aegean meets the Mediterranean, are the ruins of the ancient settlement of Knidos. The location itself is breathtaking; with rocky...

1. Grave Markers of the Ancient Elite

Grave Markers of the Ancient Elite By Natalie Scott Grave markers, even in our current era, leave a trace of where the deceased once stood and create a memory of their everlasting presence. In early Greek art, beginning around 800 B.C., a...

1. The Divine Bull

The Divine Bull By Paris Bermudes Ancient cultures throughout recognized the physical power of the bull and venerated the bull as a creature of the cosmos. The Minoan people of Crete, 2000 – 1450 BCE, emphasized bull veneration in...