Oinochoe depicting Poseidon and Theseus
Greek, Attic, ca. 470–460 B.C.
Terracotta, red figure, 15 7/8 x 10 1/4 in. (40.3 x 26.1 cm)
Gift of Rebecca Darlington Stoddard
1913.143
This large oinochoe (pitcher) is the so-called "name vase" of the Painter of the Yale Oinochoe, to whom vases in other collections have also been attributed on the basis of similar stylistic details. This painter was active in the early classical period, from ca. 475 to 450 B.C. The subject chosen for this vase was a meeting between Poseidon, the god of the sea, and Theseus, his son and a legendary king of Athens. Both Theseus, who came to be revered as the embodiment of Athenian virtue, and Poseidon, protector of the Greek fleets, were credited with aiding the Greeks in their successful prosecution of the Persian War, and both became popular subjects in postwar Attic art.
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