Paestum Red-Figured Stemless Kylix - DC.116

B A R A K AT G A L L E RY Mirror of all Ages and Cultures

Paestan Red-Figured Stemless Kylix Attributed to the Painter of Naples- DC.116 Origin: Paestum Circa: 330 BC to 320 BC Dimensions: 7.5" (19.1cm) wide Price on request

58 Brook Street, W1K 5DT, London | +44 207 493 7778 | info@barakatgallery.eu 941 North La Cienega Blvd, Los Angeles | 58-4, Samcheong-ro, Jongno-gu, Seoul

B A R A K AT G A L L E RY Mirror of all Ages and Cultures

Curatorial comment This kylix represents Dionysos with tambourine and stick striding to the right and looking to the left. Palmette (bud) between the legs. Dionysus, Greek god of Wine is commonly portrayed as one of two archetypes. Either, he is depicted as the quiet and epicurean God who quietly enjoys his wine on his Olympian throne, or as a wild and carnal spirit that animates the most feral nature of man. It is this second and darker Dionysus that is depicted on this Kylix. The carnal Dionysus was worshiped by the Bacchants, an all-female cult of the most arcane sort in Ancient Hellas, and later in Rome. It was in the name of the wine God that the cult-members raised themselves into wine and drug-ridden hysteria, consumed the flesh of live animals, and participated in massive orgies.

This depiction of Dionysus every bit merits the zeal and activity of his Bacchant worshipers. He leaps through the air, the leader of a procession, undoubtedly in his honor. The chalmys flippantly draped over his shoulders sways with the rush of his movement. He is bedecked in beaded bandoliers, and a wreath frames his head. In his right hand he holds a Tympanum, ready to be struck into a frenzied cacophony or hypnotic beat.

His left hand holds a staff, much like the ones used by the processional leaders of festivals. He looks back over his shoulder, as if to lead on the festival train behind him. His left pectoral muscle is grossly exaggerated, giving a stylized and very strikingly feminine feature to the male body.

The Kylix’s meandering border of grape leaves further accentuates the fantastic fluidity of the form.

58 Brook Street, W1K 5DT, London | +44 207 493 7778 | info@barakatgallery.eu 941 North La Cienega Blvd, Los Angeles | 58-4, Samcheong-ro, Jongno-gu, Seoul

B A R A K AT G A L L E RY Mirror of all Ages and Cultures

Ownership history: 1. 1980s: Kreisel Collection (San Francisco); 2. 2005: Numisart, Munich; 3. 2007: Sold at Christie’s New York; 4. 2007 – to date: Barakat Collection

Publication: A.D. Trendall 1987, The Red-Figured Vases of Paestum (Rome), cat. III, n. 150; pl. 179a

58 Brook Street, W1K 5DT, London | +44 207 493 7778 | info@barakatgallery.eu 941 North La Cienega Blvd, Los Angeles | 58-4, Samcheong-ro, Jongno-gu, Seoul

B A R A K AT G A L L E RY Mirror of all Ages and Cultures

58 Brook Street, W1K 5DT, London | +44 207 493 7778 | info@barakatgallery.eu 941 North La Cienega Blvd, Los Angeles | 58-4, Samcheong-ro, Jongno-gu, Seoul

B A R A K AT G A L L E RY Mirror of all Ages and Cultures

58 Brook Street, W1K 5DT, London | +44 207 493 7778 | info@barakatgallery.eu 941 North La Cienega Blvd, Los Angeles | 58-4, Samcheong-ro, Jongno-gu, Seoul

B A R A K AT G A L L E RY Mirror of all Ages and Cultures

58 Brook Street, W1K 5DT, London | +44 207 493 7778 | info@barakatgallery.eu 941 North La Cienega Blvd, Los Angeles | 58-4, Samcheong-ro, Jongno-gu, Seoul