Black-Figure Plate by the Gorgon Painter in the Walters Art Museum, September 2009

Attic Black-Figure Plate with Gorgon's Head and Bands of Animals


Creator: Gorgon Painter (Greek, active ca. 600-580 BC) (Artist)

Period: ca. 600 BC (Archaic)

Medium: terracotta (Ceramics)

Accession Number: 48.215

Measurements: 1 5/8 x 12 13/16 in. (4.2 x 32.5 cm) (h. x diam.)

Geographies: Attica, Greece (?) (Place of Origin)

This rare plate was decorated by one of Athens' most important early vase-painters, for whom the Gorgon (a creature with a frightening grimace and snakes for hair) was a favorite subject. Mythical beings such as Gorgons, sphinxes (with a woman's head, an eagle's wings, and a lion's body), and sirens (with a woman's head and a bird's body), all depicted here, were inspired by Eastern models. An owl, panther, goat, lion, and siren form a lively procession around the rim.

Text from: art.thewalters.org/detail/31014/attic-black-figure-plate-...