Arkesilas Cup
| Arkesilas Cup | |
|---|---|
Ile-de-France, France |
The Arkesilas Cup is a kylix by the Laconian vase painter known as the Arkesilas Painter, whose name vase it is. It depicts, and is thus named after, Arkesilaos II, king of Kyrene (d. 550 BC) and is dated to about 565–560 BC.
The cup was found at
silphion
, a rare plant for which Arkesilaos had a trade monopoly. His watchful stance mays support this. Several African animals underline the African location of the image.
In style and subject the painting is very unusual in Greek vase-painting. The depiction of a living political figure is extremely rare and unusual in vase painting, and images of Arekisalos II are similarly rare. For technological history, the depiction of weighing scales is of major significance, as their structure and use is shown. Historically, the production of such imagery in Laconia is also important, in that it illustrates the close links between
Kyrene, in North Africa, was found on the island of Samos
, also a close ally of Sparta.
Bibliography
- ISBN 0-500-20309-1.
- ISBN 3-8062-1743-2.
- Barbara Patzek: Arkesilaos II, In Der Neue Pauly
- Matthias Steinhart: Arkesilas-Maler, In: Der Neue Pauly