Not only did the pots have to be stacked in the kiln in a specific manner, but the conditions inside had to be precise. He produced a large number of works over his 50-year career.To produce the characteristic red and black colors found on vases, Greek craftsmen used liquid clay as paint (termed “slip”) and perfected a complicated three-stage firing process. The Berlin painter trained with the Attic red-figure Pioneers, who taught him to study the body in movement and represent nudity.

The Berlin painter favored the arrangement of figures seen on this krater: one figure standing out against the black surface of the bowl on a band decorated with a meander. The youth served there as Zeus' cupbearer. Zeus (or his eagle) carried Ganymedes to Mt Olympus.

He is depicted hurrying toward Ganymedes along a decorative meander. On the opposite side of the krater, Zeus is seen wearing a himation and carrying a sceptre. These are further indications that Ganymedes is a youth. He plays with a hoop and holds a cockerel, the gift of Zeus. These are Greek conventions that indicate the subject is a youth. On this krater, Ganymedes is depicted as beardless, and his hair is loose and flowing. Ganymedes was a handsome Trojan prince whom Zeus fancied. The krater does not have a foot so it was probably set on a stand of some sort. The Ganymedes krater is lugged, meaning it has very short handles, one on each side of the krater at the opening.

The bell krater measures 33 cm in height and 33 cm in diameter.Ī bell krater was a vessel in which water and wine were mixed at banquets. The painting appears on one side of an Attic red-figure bell krater of clay.

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