The Vix Krater

Archaeology plays a big part in my life, and therefore my blog, and since artefacts are my thing, I think it's about time I started highlighting some of my favourites.  In future posts I'll introduce you to objects like socketed axes and gouges and swords etcetera.  They're not particularly flashy, but I'm very fond of them anyway. 

Oh, and if you're interested, the dimensions for yesterday's mystery object came back and it proved to be a dagger.  What kind of dagger isn't clear yet, though it's clearly Wessex/Arreton EBA...  Sorry, I'm rabbiting again - I can hear you saying "Eh?" and don't worry, some day I'll post a nice picture of a Wessex II/Arreton type dagger just so you know what I'm talking about.

I'm inclined to say that my favourite artefact is the one I'm looking at at the time (my apologies to gardening guru the late Christopher Lloyd for paraphrasing his quote about plants!) but needless to say there are one or two objects which stick out from the crowd.  

I have two particular favourites. Both, oddly enough, are made of bronze.  One's from Classical Greece, the other's La Tene Iron Age ('Celtic').  Since artefact illustration is something I find enjoyable and since I have too much time on my hands now the thesis is out of the window, I've decided that the best way I can introduce you to the wonders of ancient material culture is to draw the objects in question.  In some cases, I won't be drawing from real life, sadly, but at least I can reproduce them from photographs.  This isn't as barmy as it sounds - to illustrate any object means you have to look at it with a depth and intensity that you wouldn't normally employ as a casual viewer. This of course helps improve your understanding the object, and the methods and material with which it was created.

Of my two favourites, the Vix Krater came first because it was the only one I could get a decent photo of.  My other favourites, the Basse-Yutz flagons (yes, there's two of them), are proving much more problematic.  There's a few 'arty' photographs available, but nothing informative.

Here's the Vix Krater in its entirety, as featured on Wikipedia:-

 

 

The object was once used for mixing wine, and is thought to date from the late 6th century BC.  It comes from Greece - the exact place of manufacture is unknown, with Tarentum and Sparta being touted as possibilities. This artefact appealed to me years before I got interested in Sparta and all things Spartan.  Now, having learned more about Sparta and her culture, I wouldn't be at all surprised if the Vix Krater does come from that neck of the woods as the Spartans (or rather the craftsmen sub-class who serviced their economy) were extremely skilled at metalworking. 

The frieze of figures at the top features alternating hoplites and chariot teams.  The object is thought to have been shipped to its destination as a flat-pack kit to be assembled by the new owners - the figures have each helpfully been labelled to make sure they get installed in their correct location on the vessel.

The photograph above doesn't do the frieze any justice whatsoever.  So just to give you a better idea of the details, here's an inked-up version of one of the chariot teams:-
 

Now, the eagle-eyed amongst you will notice that my chariot faces in the opposite direction from the ones shown in the full-size version.  One of the images must therefore have been printed in negative, but sadly, since I've never seen the original version, I can't tell you which one's which.  I suspect that my version's the one that's wrong. 

I particularly like the horses.  They're proud, they're full of panache and of course they remind me of my old horse Squire (and yes, I will show some pictures of him soon, I promise).  The long hair on the charioteer might suggest a Spartan, since they wore their hair long, but I think I'm right in saying that at the time this object was made, most if not all Greeks wore their hair long anyway.

Last but not least, the context in which this object was discovered deserves a mention.  The Vix Krater was recovered miles away from its place of origin at Vix in Burgundy, in the grave of an Iron Age woman.  She must have been incredibly powerful and well-connected to have one of the finest pieces of metalwork ever produced in the ancient world placed in the grave to accompany her to the afterlife.  The rest of her grave-goods were equally rich.  Her grave included a dismantled wagon with bronze fittings, a gold torc of Mediterranean origin with winged horses on the terminals, 3 Etruscan bronze vessels and an Attic black figure vase.

 

The Vix Krater

Archaeology plays a big part in my life, and therefore my blog, and since artefacts are my thing, I think it's about time I started highlighting some of my favourites.  In future posts I'll introduce you to objects like socketed axes and gouges and swords etcetera.  They're not particularly flashy, but I'm very fond of them anyway. 

Oh, and if you're interested, the dimensions for yesterday's mystery object came back and it proved to be a dagger.  What kind of dagger isn't clear yet, though it's clearly Wessex/Arreton EBA...  Sorry, I'm rabbiting again - I can hear you saying "Eh?" and don't worry, some day I'll post a nice picture of a Wessex II/Arreton type dagger just so you know what I'm talking about.

I'm inclined to say that my favourite artefact is the one I'm looking at at the time (my apologies to gardening guru the late Christopher Lloyd for paraphrasing his quote about plants!) but needless to say there are one or two objects which stick out from the crowd.  

I have two particular favourites. Both, oddly enough, are made of bronze.  One's from Classical Greece, the other's La Tene Iron Age ('Celtic').  Since artefact illustration is something I find enjoyable and since I have too much time on my hands now the thesis is out of the window, I've decided that the best way I can introduce you to the wonders of ancient material culture is to draw the objects in question.  In some cases, I won't be drawing from real life, sadly, but at least I can reproduce them from photographs.  This isn't as barmy as it sounds - to illustrate any object means you have to look at it with a depth and intensity that you wouldn't normally employ as a casual viewer. This of course helps improve your understanding the object, and the methods and material with which it was created.

Of my two favourites, the Vix Krater came first because it was the only one I could get a decent photo of.  My other favourites, the Basse-Yutz flagons (yes, there's two of them), are proving much more problematic.  There's a few 'arty' photographs available, but nothing informative.

Here's the Vix Krater in its entirety, as featured on Wikipedia:-

 

 

The object was once used for mixing wine, and is thought to date from the late 6th century BC.  It comes from Greece - the exact place of manufacture is unknown, with Tarentum and Sparta being touted as possibilities. This artefact appealed to me years before I got interested in Sparta and all things Spartan.  Now, having learned more about Sparta and her culture, I wouldn't be at all surprised if the Vix Krater does come from that neck of the woods as the Spartans (or rather the craftsmen sub-class who serviced their economy) were extremely skilled at metalworking. 

The frieze of figures at the top features alternating hoplites and chariot teams.  The object is thought to have been shipped to its destination as a flat-pack kit to be assembled by the new owners - the figures have each helpfully been labelled to make sure they get installed in their correct location on the vessel.

The photograph above doesn't do the frieze any justice whatsoever.  So just to give you a better idea of the details, here's an inked-up version of one of the chariot teams:-
 

Now, the eagle-eyed amongst you will notice that my chariot faces in the opposite direction from the ones shown in the full-size version.  One of the images must therefore have been printed in negative, but sadly, since I've never seen the original version, I can't tell you which one's which.  I suspect that my version's the one that's wrong. 

I particularly like the horses.  They're proud, they're full of panache and of course they remind me of my old horse Squire (and yes, I will show some pictures of him soon, I promise).  The long hair on the charioteer might suggest a Spartan, since they wore their hair long, but I think I'm right in saying that at the time this object was made, most if not all Greeks wore their hair long anyway.

Last but not least, the context in which this object was discovered deserves a mention.  The Vix Krater was recovered miles away from its place of origin at Vix in Burgundy, in the grave of an Iron Age woman.  She must have been incredibly powerful and well-connected to have one of the finest pieces of metalwork ever produced in the ancient world placed in the grave to accompany her to the afterlife.  The rest of her grave-goods were equally rich.  Her grave included a dismantled wagon with bronze fittings, a gold torc of Mediterranean origin with winged horses on the terminals, 3 Etruscan bronze vessels and an Attic black figure vase.