Vase Catalog Number: Berlin F 2537

Decoration:

Interior: Eos and Kephalos. Eos carries Kephalos to the right, her head turned back to the left. She is winged and wears a chiton. He is a young, naked boy with long hair. He wears a wreath.

Sides A and B: birth of Erichthonios. The birth occurs on side A, while on side B gods and goddesses rush to attend the birth. Ge rises from the earth and hands the baby Erichthonios to Athena who is standing by. Erichthonios reaches out for her and she to him, her head bent toward him. The serpent-bodied Kekrops, on the left, stands leaning on his staff, watching the birth. He is wearing a short chiton and a wreath, and a mantle is draped over his arms. Ge, her long hair falling in tresses over her shoulders, is wrapped in a mantle and wears a crown. Athena wears a chiton and her aegis, her hair tied up in a wide band. The baby Erichthonios is naked, but there is a ring on a string draped over his shoulder. A naked, bearded man with a staff stands behind Athena, his mantle draped over one shoulder, He wears a wreath. A girl comes up behind him, one hand held open, the other pulling up the shoulder of her chiton. She is followed, on side B, by another girl, also pulling at her chiton, who turns back to look at the bearded man behind her. He is carrying a staff and wears a chiton, mantle and wreath. Behind him is a third girl, her body turned to face forward, her arms held out as if in surprise (her head is not preserved). Another bearded man with a staff, dressed in a mantle and wreath walks behind her. A fourth bearded man in a mantle (wreathless) stands leaning on his staff on the far right. The three goddesses are probably the daughters of Kekrops, who were charged with the care of Erichthonios. One of the men may be Hephaistos.

Inscriptions:

The insciption above the scene on the interior reads, hEÔS, Eos, while on the right, under the wing is written: KEPHALOS, Kephalos. On sides A and B many of the figures are labeled, including: KE[K]ROPs; GE; ERICHTHONIOS; ATHÊNAIA; [Ê]PHAISTOS; ERSÊ, Kekrops, Ge, Erichthonios, Athena, Hephaistos and Herse. Other labelled gods are: [AG]LAUROS; ERECHTHOUS; PAND[ROSOS; AI]GEUS; PALAS, Aglauros, Erechtheus, Pandrosos, Aigeus and Pallas.

Collection History:

The vase was acquired by the museum in 1876.

Condition:

The vase is in fair condition. The interior is damaged and much of the surface is lost. There is some encrustation and discoloration of the exterior surface.

Sources Used:

CVA, Germany 22, Berlin 3: pl. 113.1-2, 115.2, 116.2, 117.1, 132.4,8

Other Bibliography:

Mon. 10 pl. 39; Cook 1914-1940, iii, 186; Roscher s.v. Erichthonios 1306; AM. 69-70 Beil. 36, 1-2; WV. B pl. 12; Jacobsthal 1927, pl. 85, b; Buschor 1940, 214; Ant. Cl. 15, pl. 9, 1; Hist. rel. 183, below; EAA, i, 140; Rumpf Rel. fig. 28; Kaempf-Dimitriadou Liebe pl. 11.6; Bérard Anodoi pl. 2, fig. 4; Brommer 1978a, pl. 16.1; Kron Phylenheroen pls. 4.2, 5.2; LIMC, I pls. 210-211, Aglauros 7, pl. 280, Aigeus 39; Hopper Acropolis 34; Schefold 1981, 54, 316, figs. 65-66, 457; Greifenhagen 1968, fig. 7; Loraux Citoyenneté fig. 5a-b; Gehrig et al. Führer, pl. 81; BullCleveland 70 (1983) 7, 276, fig. 5-6; Seki 1985, pl. 33.1-3; LIMC, III pl. 578, Eos 274; Boardman 1989, fig. 238.

(Kathleen Krattenmaker)