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17-523: The Amphiaraos krater is a Late Corinthian red-ground column krater . It is considered the masterpiece of the Amphiaraos Painter (whose name vase it is) and one of the major specimens of the red-ground vase painting of Corinth . Dated to circa 560 BC, the Amphiaraos Krater depicts on the front a frieze of horsemen and above it the departure of Amphiaraos . The back was decorated with

34-467: A battle frieze, above it again Amphiaraos, this time as a participant in the funeral games of Pelias . Below one of the handles, a wrestling match is depicted. The paintings on the vessel are considered especially colourful and detailed. Thus, the anger in Amphiaraos eye, looking at Eriphyle , his only family member not to wish for his safe return, is visible. A sorrowful seer indicates the imminent death of

51-628: A few extant Archaic bronze kraters (or often only their handles), almost exclusively of the volute-type. Their main production centres were Sparta , Argos and Corinth , in Peloponnesus. During the Classical period the volute-type continued to be very popular along with the calyx-type, and beside the Corinthian workshop an Attic one was probably active. Exquisite exemplars of both volute- and calyx-kraters come from Macedonian 4th century BC graves. Among them

68-536: A long thin slab of clay around them both forming a drum with flanged edges. This strip would then have been continued downward until the bottom of the handle, where the potter would have cut a U-shaped arch in the clay before attaching the handle to the body of the vase. Bell kraters were first made in the early 5th century, which meant that it came later than the three other krater types. This form of krater looks like an inverted bell with handles that are faced up. Bell kraters are red-figure and not black-figure like

85-584: Is a spiral, scroll-like ornament that forms the basis of the Ionic order , found in the capital of the Ionic column. It was later incorporated into Corinthian order and Composite column capitals. Four are normally to be found on an Ionic capital, eight on Composite capitals and smaller versions (sometimes called helix ) on the Corinthian capital. The word derives from the Latin voluta ("scroll"). It has been suggested that

102-439: The gilded Derveni Krater represents an exceptional chef d'œuvre of late Classical metalwork. The Vix bronze crater , found in a Celtic tomb in central France, is the largest known Greek krater , being 1.63 m in height and over 200 kg in weight. Others were in silver, which were too valuable and tempting to thieves to be buried in graves, and have not survived. Ornamental stone kraters are known from Hellenistic times,

119-461: The Attic Late 1 Krater, which was made between 760 and 735 B.C.E. This object was found among other funeral objects, and its exterior depicted a funeral procession to the gravesite. At the beginning of each symposium a symposiarch ( συμποσίαρχος , symposíarchos , 'lord of the common drink'), was elected by the participants. He would then assume control of the wine servants, and thus of

136-474: The degree of wine dilution and how it changed during the party, and the rate of cup refills. The krater and how it was filled and emptied was thus the centerpiece of the symposiarch 's authority. An astute symposiarch should be able to diagnose the degree of inebriation of his fellow symposiasts and make sure that the symposium progressed smoothly and without drunken excess. This form originated in Corinth in

153-739: The hero. The same scene was depicted on the Kypselos chest in Olympia, as described by Pausanias . The krater used to be on display in the Antikensammlung Berlin , but disappeared at the end of the Second World War . Since 1945, the Amphiaraos krater has been housed in the State Historical Museum in Moscow. Column krater At a Greek symposium , kraters were placed in the center of

170-443: The largest of the kraters, supposedly developed by the potter Exekias in black-figure style, though in fact almost always seen in red. The lower body is shaped like the calyx of a flower, and the foot is stepped. The psykter -shaped vase fits inside it so well stylistically that it has been suggested that the two might have often been made as a set. It is always made with two robust upturned handles positioned on opposite sides of

187-576: The lower body or "cul". This type of krater, defined by volute -shaped handles, was invented in Laconia in the early 6th century BC, then adopted by Attic potters. Its production was carried on by Greeks in Apulia until the end of the 4th century BC. Its shape and method of manufacture are similar to those of the column krater, but the handles are unique: to make each, the potter would have first made two side spirals ("volutes") as decorative disks, then attached

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204-633: The most famous being the Borghese Vase of Pentelic Marble and the Medici Vase , also of marble. After rediscovery of these pieces, imitations became a staple of garden decoration in the Baroque and Neoclassical periods. The French artist and landscape designer Hubert Robert included the Borghese Vase, both alone and together with other stone kraters, in several of his works. Volute A volute

221-453: The ornament was inspired by the curve of a ram 's horns, or perhaps was derived from the natural spiral found in the ovule of a common species of clover native to Greece . Alternatively, it may simply be of geometrical origin. The ornament can be seen in Renaissance and Baroque architecture and is a common decoration in furniture design, silverware and ceramics. A method of drawing

238-504: The other kraters. According to most scholars ceramic kraters imitated shapes designed initially for metal vessels; these were common in antiquity, but survivals are very rare, as the metal was recyclable. Among the largest and most famous metal kraters in antiquity were one in the possession of the Samian tyrant Polycrates , and another one dedicated by Croesus to the Delphic oracle . There are

255-424: The room. They were quite large, so they were not easily portable when filled. Thus, the wine-water mixture would be withdrawn from the krater with other vessels, such as a kyathos ( pl. : kyathoi ), an amphora ( pl. : amphorai ), or a kylix ( pl. : kylikes ). In fact, Homer 's Odyssey describes a steward drawing wine from a krater at a banquet and then running to and fro pouring

272-475: The seventh century BC, but was taken over by the Athenians where it is typically black-figure . They ranged in size from 35 centimetres (14 in) to 56 centimetres (22 in) in height and were usually thrown in three pieces: the body/ shoulder area was one, the base another, and the neck/ lip/ rim a third. The handles were pulled separately. They were studied by archaeologist Tomris Bakır . These are among

289-484: The wine into guests' drinking cups. The modern Greek word now used for undiluted wine, krasi ( κρασί ), originates from the krasis ( κράσις , lit.   ' mixing ' ) of wine and water in kraters. Pottery kraters were glazed on the interior to make the surface of the clay more impervious for holding water, and possibly for aesthetic reasons, since the interior could easily be seen. The exterior of kraters often depicted scenes from Greek life, such as

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