Black Figure Amphora
Produced by the Ancient Greek potters in sixth century BC, the Attic Black Figure Amphora was one of the many great and admired relics of pottery. The Attic Black Figure Amphora gives us a peek into the important documentation for the many aspects of Greek life through the painted scenes of the deities. To fully understand the importance, one must first understand the beauty and description of this piece. This particular piece of ancient pottery is approximately an 18 inch with symmetrical shaped two handed piece. The surface of this piece illustrates Greek athletes partaking in Olympic competitions. These competitions were important to this culture because athletics and religion were closely related (museum plaque). Using the art work on the vase, the overall shape, and material in which is used serves as a "chronological indicator" for archeologists to gather information about the piece and also the time period.
One can see, using the subject matter placed on the vessel, and the positioning and types of characters and colors displayed, that there was a definite meaning behind the vessel that the maker wanted to convey. To fully grasp an understanding for the reason the vessel is the way we view it today with its subject matter displayed, one must first understand the series of the ceramics of that period. The "Black Figure Technique" can be seen through most of the vessel remains tinted red with the figures that encompass that vessel remain black. This technique first surfaced in Cornith in the fifth and sixth centuries of BC. Most of the pots were created on a manually worked potter's wheel; however some that were larger were made section by section, ultimately being hardened in the wood fired kilns. The vase surface was then covered with diluted clay, making and determining the extent of the glaze of the vessel. The silhouettes were painted, and more intricate detail was drawn with fine brushes or tools. By altering the flow of oxygen...
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