Funerary Vases
Funerary Vase (Krater) 1) A painted clay vessel showing an early style of Greek figurative art, also embodies some core Greek beliefs. 2) Grave Marker: a) A Krater is a wide-mouthed clay vessel for mixing wine and water. 3) Terracotta: a) The vessel is made from Terracotta (Terracotta, Terra cotta or Terra-cotta (Italian: "baked earth", from the Latin terra cotta), a type of earthenware, is a clay-based unglazed or glazed ceramic where the fired body is porous. Its uses include vessels (notably flowerpots), and Greek terracotta figurines. The term is used to refer to items made out of this material and to its natural, brownish orange color, which varies considerably. In archaeology and art history, "terracotta" is often used of objects not made on a potter's wheel, such as figurines, where objects made on the wheel from the same material, possibly even by the same person, are called pottery; the choice of term depending on the type of object rather than the material). b) The Funerary Vase was made on a potter’s wheel in sections, which the potter later put together. The Story the Vase tells 4) The Deceased: a) In the painting on the Funerary Vase (Krater), the body of the deceased lies on a four legged bier or funerary platform, the deceased is tipped on his shoulders so one can see his whole body. His checkered burial shroud floats above him in space. The bier is rendered in a perspectival system that suggests it is in three dimensionality. 5) Mourners: a) The figures surrounding the deceased’s body probably represent his family. b) Two small figures stand at his feet. An adult figure stands to the right, some wave fronds. 6) Sacrificial Animals: a) Greeks customarily sacrificed small animals at funerals, one can see some geese and a pair of deer below the deceased. 7) Standing Figures: a) These figures hold their hands over their heads. This is a