An Archaic Vase with Representation of a Marriage Procession

Author(s): Cecil Smith

Source: The Journal of Hellenic Studies, Vol. 1 (1880), pp. 202-209
Published by: The Society for the Promotion of Hellenic Studies
Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/623619 .
Accessed: 08/02/2015 11:10
Your use of the JSTOR archive indicates your acceptance of the Terms & Conditions of Use, available at .
http://www.jstor.org/page/info/about/policies/terms.jsp

.
JSTOR is a not-for-profit service that helps scholars, researchers, and students discover, use, and build upon a wide range of
content in a trusted digital archive. We use information technology and tools to increase productivity and facilitate new forms
of scholarship. For more information about JSTOR, please contact support@jstor.org.

The Society for the Promotion of Hellenic Studies is collaborating with JSTOR to digitize, preserve and extend
access to The Journal of Hellenic Studies.

http://www.jstor.org

This content downloaded from 89.34.228.69 on Sun, 8 Feb 2015 11:10:09 AM

All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions

202

AN ARCHAIC VASE WITH REPRESENTATION

AN ARCHAIC VASE WITH REPRESENTATION OF A

MARRIAGE PROCESSION.
THE vase which forms the subject of this memoir has been
thought worthy of publication, both because it belongs to a
type of which we have as yet but few examples, and also on
account of the peculiar interest attaching to the design painted
upon it. Its probable age can only be a matter of conjecture,
as some of the vases of the class to which it belongs have been
considered by archaeologists to be late imitations of the archaic,
while on the other hand the internal evidence of the painting
would seem to assign it to a place among the earliest class of
Greek vases. It is figured on Plate VII.
It is a circular dish with two handles, 3 inches high by 111
inches diameter, composed of a soft reddish clay of a yielding
surface; the painting is laid on in a reddish brown, in some
parts so thinly as to be transparent, and in other parts has
rubbed away with the surface, so that it has acquired that
patchy appearance generally characteristic of vase pictures of
this type. The drawing, though crude and in parts almost
grotesque, is executed with great spirit and freedom of style,and thus could hardly have been the work of a late provincial
artist-while in the shape of the column and of the wheel of
the cart, in the prominent nose and chin which admit of no
distinction between bearded and beardless faces, and in the
angular contour of the human figures, we recognise features
peculiar to an archaic period of art.
The figures, which are drawn in silhouette, helped out here
and there with an occasional rough incised line, are arranged
in a frieze around the exterior of the vase, within a wreath of
single ivy leaves; another design occupies a medallion in the
centre of the interior. In this medallion, an unarmed warrioris

This content downloaded from 89.34.228.69 on Sun, 8 Feb 2015 11:10:09 AM

All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions

OF A MARRIAGE PROCESSION.

203

represented easily overcoming an opponent whose arms he holds,

and who attempts to fly, vainly brandishing a sword in his left
hand: in his right he holds a cord, at the end of which is
fastened an object of indefinite outline, in shape somewhat resembling a small tortoise: on the right a third warrior flies at
full speed, looking back with a gesture of fear. This subject may
perhaps represent an episode in the life of one of the mythical
heroes of Athens, Herakles or Theseus, but at present I can
offer no certain explanation of it.
The chief interest of our vase, however, lies in the interpretation of the frieze of figures which decorates the exterior (Plate
VII. scale j). These may be divided into two separate groups,
each of which pourtrays a distinct scene. The first and most important group includes fourteen out of the twenty human figures,
and extends from the column on the right to the figure behind
the car on the left. It is evident that we have here represented a
procession of figures about to sacrifice to Athene : on the extreme
right we see the Doric column, indicating, as is usual in Greek
vase pictures, the whole by a part, and therefore standing here
for the Temple itself. In front of this column, and apparently
sub divo, stands the statue of Athen6 Polias as it stood upon
the Akropolis before the sacking of Athens by the Persians,
the shield advanced in the left hand, the spear brandished
in the right, fit symbols of the tutelary goddess of the
Athenian Akropolis; her helmet, for which there was not space
in the design, is partially indicated by a peak on each side of
the face. The identity of this figure is still further established
2
o'v
by the objects behind the statue: the snake, the oliboupp
of the goddess, and the olive plant, her peculiar attribute, both
especially significant of her temple on the Akropolis, where they
were cherished in her honour. In front of the statue is a somewhat strange object, formed apparently of rough blocks of stone,
in shape like a high-backed seat: this represents the altar of
burnt sacrifice, from which the flames already ascend. We
know that it was usual to have the altar placed thus before the
temple : Aeschylus (Suppl. 1. 494) speaks of fiwpool7rp6vaot; and
indeed it was only natural that the altar should stand close to
the goddess ; in the shape, which I believe to be unique,
1 The rough vertical line down the
centre is possibly a rude attempt to

render fluting ?
2 Ar.
Lys. 759.

This content downloaded from 89.34.228.69 on Sun, 8 Feb 2015 11:10:09 AM

All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions

204

AN ARCHAIC VASE WITH REPRESENTATION

there is possibly a reference to the seats of the deities frequently placed in their temples, such as, for example, the golden
seat which Plutarch tells us (Per. 13) was made by Pheidias for
Athen6.
Upon the back of the altar is seated a bird, which is certainly
not the owl, but seems more to resemble in shape a crow, and
in effect it appears that this bird was originally under the protection of Athend, although it afterwards gave place to the owl
(Ovid, Met. ii. 549, sqq.): Pausanias (iv. 34, 6) speaks of a
bronze statue of the goddess in the open air, on the Akropolis
at Athens, holding a crow in her hand : Aelian, again (N. A. 3, 9),
states that this very bird was particularly invoked at weddings,
a fact which tends to confirm the interpretation of this design
which I am about to propose. It is well known that it was
customary among the Greeks to decorate an altar with the
attributive bird of the god: the eagle, raven, and owl are most
frequently so found, and Strabo says that the great altar of
Artemis at Ephesos was almost covered with emblems of this
kind, works of Praxiteles.
We now come to the actual procession, which I think can be
clearly proved to represent an Athenian wedding; but first it
will be well to give a short account of the nuptial ceremony as
we know it from paintings and other sources.
The prototype of all Greek marriage festivals was the celebration of the nuptials of Zeus and Hera: and almost all the
representations of a marriage scene which have come down to
us in art are generally explained to be mystical processions of
deities, most usually including Apollo, Artemis, Hermes, Athend,
Dionysos, besides the king of gods and his consort, whose place
in the quadriga is sometimes filled by two of the lesser deities.'
Otherwise the existing monuments give us little information
upon the subject: and I think this vase will be found to furnish
valuable evidence towards clearing up more than one point
hitherto obscure.
The time of year most usually selected for marriages was the
month Gamelion, which included part of January and February,
and of which certain days seem to have been considered more
suitable than others. In this month was celebrated the Gamelia,
1

See Gerhard,Aus. Vas. Taff. cccx. foll.

This content downloaded from 89.34.228.69 on Sun, 8 Feb 2015 11:10:09 AM

All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions

OF A MARRIAGEPROCESSION.

205

or lepoSgrydpov,the festival of the marriage of Zeus and Hera,

in which both Athena and Dionysos, in their quality of deities
of nature, bore a part. The actual wedding, after the lawful
affiancing ('dyy-ts) had taken place, was preceded by a solemn
offered by the father of the
sacrifice, 7rpoTdXezaor
bride (Eur. Ipth. Aul. wpoydeta,
718) either to the protecting gods of
marriage, ?eo laL~Xtoo,or, as we learn from Plutarch (Amat.
thus
INarr. 1), to the tutelary deity of the place, ?e
diyXwptov":
in Photius (p. 464, Dobr.) this sacrifice is performed
in honour of
S?Eo1v, who, as he is speaking of Athens, cannot be other than
Athen6. It is uncertain whether this rite was performed on a
day previous to the wedding-day; the evidence of Achilles
Tatius (ii. 12) certainly points to the wedding-day itself, ' where
the father of the bride, already sacrificing the r pore'Xea, on
account of a bad omen, puts off the wedding for that day:
and indeed it seems
7q v qepepav
edrEoXSeVdeivlyv
70or' was
7ydptov:
natural
to
such
that
the
case:
the bride and
only
expect
have
both
taken
in
the
sacrificial
must
bridegroom
part
procession, for the intervention of the deity was necessary to confirm the ceremony: Plutarch says (Praec. conj. p. 138, B.), rwV
O
v 7 7 7
iepeta
'7raptov OeoloV,
1Aoyrpop
-VeYeLp7vp6'ivotS
:2
the 'giving away,'
took place here:
probably
Efrpploae
x&oo-atv,
in Hyper. pro Lycoph., Dioxippos accompanies the procession
(I7xoXo4BeL)8&h
Xpav d 81oo-0at a)r?7v, and possibly the
A' taken this occasion to dedicate the
bride would have
atpea'o-e9v
(Hesych.) of her hair.3 I see no reason, therefore, why the
leading home of the bride should not immediately have followed
the sacrifice, forming part of the same ceremony. Hesychius,
and some writers who are quoted as loci upon this point, would
in a limited, as well as in a
appear to use the word
7yd/po more than the
as
consummation
general, sense, implying nothing
of the nuptials, excluding all the ceremonies, even down to
the banquet: thus he defines 7rpo-reXeta as 'q"rp TV
ryCd/Low
Ovo'a Kait oprj:' I think we get rid of a difficulty by
bearing
in mind this distinction of the rpordXetafrom the
proper:
yd/pov
I
Cf. Becker's Charicles, ed. G6ll,
pp. 361-2. I can find no direct evidence against this theory except a pas-

sage of Hesychius

(under yduwa
4G077),

of which the reading seems unsatis-

factory.
2 Cf.
Zonaras, lex. p. 77.
Ns drT
r
s Poll. iii. 38, al r-is 41ugs
(i.e. at the 7rporrneta)
Tats
a'rr7pXO"ro
Oa7Zsat Kdpai.

This content downloaded from 89.34.228.69 on Sun, 8 Feb 2015 11:10:09 AM

All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions

206

AN ARCHAICVASE WITH REPRESENTATION

wbich is indeed suggested by Pollux, though he again divides

them differently: ' Ka?7~buev 'pryovdpovKai q EopTl, 0ydol- i
6" wrp6\
yalpov

Ovola,

rporTXeta

Kab 7rporyapeta.'

Of. also

Hyperides, quoted by Pollux, iii. 44, who says, '"OlOpov pe'vrot

wherethe
o01-O epyov ,dvov dXXax rijrv Eor(latwV,
'a is
/yao, rcaXke,
limited sense of the word
Thus,
then, it
clearly recognised.
is necessary to consider the word yc4Lov as used in two distinct
senses: either for the whole ceremony generally, or as forming a component part of it, together with the 7rporTeeta, the
ya/iXta,

&c.; whilst the

7rpo-reXeta would include

the pro-

cession to the temple, the sacrifice (the omen-taking, dedications,

&c.), the gK&oo-t, and in certain instances, the leading home
and banquet. Arrived at the house of the bridegroom, the
bride was probably conducted within by her mother, bearing
a lighted torch (Eur. Phoen. 344 and Iph. Aul. 728): and the
ceremony was terminated by the marriage banquet, ?olv?
fyajLctrj.

It is probable then that the design before us represents the

preparatory to the wedding: the nuptial procession
'XporTkEca
moves along, headed by a female figure, the priestess' for the
occasion, who carries upon her head the kaneon, a flat circular
basket containg the cakes, chaplets, and other objects intended
for use in the sacrifice. It may be noticed that this figure
wears an upper garment similar to that of Athena, which does
not appear to be the ordinary diploidion: presuming that this
may, in the case of the Goddess, represent the sacred aegis,
her usual attribute, we must look for a satisfactory precedent for its appearance upon an ordinary mortal. A passage of Zonaras (Lex. p. 77) renders such an interpretation
7"
possible: 1 li~peta 'A07rnyot
v tepalaivyl8a opoDo-a7rp01 70oV
veo7?ydtoveio-epXeeTat:but in drawing such as that of our
design it is of course useless to insist upon minute points
of detail. Next comes the ox, the usual victim on such
occasions for those who could afford it, led by a cord in
the hand of the principal male figure, who would probably be
the father of the bride, assisted by an attendant who holds a
1 Either the regular priestess of
Athene or, as we know was the case
in the Dionysia (Ar. Ach. 241-252),
an unmarried female, probably a rela-

tive of the bride.

2
Ach. Tat. ii. 12; Eur. Iph. in A.
718.

This content downloaded from 89.34.228.69 on Sun, 8 Feb 2015 11:10:09 AM

All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions

OF A MARRIAGE PROCESSION.

207

cord attached to either of the hind legs of the animal: between

these two figures walks an auletes playing upon the double
flutes: then follow four figures, one carrying an oinochoN,
probably
containing wine for the sacrifice, two with torches, the U8&ev
vvguteali (Ar. Pax, 1318), and two with chaplets: the whole
arrangement thus coinciding with the accounts we have of such
processions, which included flute-players, torch-bearers, and
persons carrying chaplets,' most of whom probably joined in
chanting the song of Hymenaios.2
The bridal car itself, drawn by two mules, and followed by a
figure bearing a wand, closes the procession: such carts are of
extremely rare occurrence on monuments of Greek art, instances
being limited, on Greek vases at least, to three or four: of these,
the interpretation of one (Gerhard, Aus. Vas. ccxvii. 2) remains
doubtful: in a second (Panofka, Bild. ant. Lebens,xx. 2, p. 47)
the &lltaa is certainly in use as a funeral car :" while in a third
(Ibid. xvii. 2) it is probably a nuptial car, containing the bridal
couple and the 'best man.' In this last instance, as well as
upon our vase, the body of the cart is made of wicker,
whence Homer's epithet e,7VXei/cro-: and from his description
we learn that this part, which he calls 7retpzV, was capable of
being detached from the rest: 7elpt0Oa 8 8~o-av dew'ai'r2j'
II. 24, 190, 267: in a funeral it was probably so
(4etip),
detached to allow of the coffin being placed lengthwise on
the cart. The mule car seems from the time of Homer downwards to have been the most usual conveyance for domestic
purposes, and especially for weddings: we gather from Pollux4
that it was customary to fetch the bride in a car rather than on
b /eVre-av, el e6
foot: rr&levoV9~E 7T1a9
vv'/1a9q<S ertTo7rOXVo
Inside the car
v'&TO'
e~?
?, xa/taiaov
eoX',yero.
sat theactIwE7To
and
the
between
the
bride,
bridegroom
7rdpoxoq, who
seems to have officiated as the bridegroom's friend, much the
same as our 'best man' : Photius, s. v., says: PE4r0
7 puh t
'
6
8
vvio0
ca1
rdpoXoq. This
Te
~lcard'pw0ev
x
vvIq4,
'

Soph. Oed. Tyr. 3, &c.

Wachsmuth, Hell. Alt. ii. 389;
Pollux, i. 35, &c.
3 Cf. Hom. II. vii. 426, and xxiv. 782.
Gerhard, in the Berlins antike Bildwerke, describing a vase which is cer2

tainly Etruscan, mentions a similar

two-wheeled mule car, on which lies a
beardedcorpse ; the processionis headed
by the grotesque figure of Charun, the
Etruscan conception of death.
4 Onom. iii. 40.

This content downloaded from 89.34.228.69 on Sun, 8 Feb 2015 11:10:09 AM

All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions

208

AN ARCHAIC VASE WITH REPRESENTATION

expression has led many to believe that the three sat upon the
same seat: but judging from the size of the cart, and from the
evidence of our vase, it is more probable that they sat one
behind the other, the bride still plaq. We may assume that
either the bridegroom or the 7rdpoXovwould drive, and the first
three of the figures in the cart thus would be accounted for. The
fourth, who sits at the back holding a chaplet, wears a talaric
chiton; from the analogy of the priestess and the figure of
Athena, who alone of all in the design wear this garment, if we
do not consider the bride, we may assume that this figure is
female. Though no positive evidence exists as to the presence
of a fourth person, it is probable that we see here either the
who 'armother of the bride or a bridesmaid, vvp~bEerTpta,
the
the
wedding' (Poll. iii. 41).
ranged
things concerning
From the gesture of the hands she seems to be conversing
with the figure who closes the procession, and who is possibly a
marshal such as we see on the Frieze of the Parthenon; permentioned
haps in this figure we see the muleteer, 8pecacopov,o,
car
in
the
bridal
the proas
following
by Hyperides (Lyc. 4),
cession: Ope;(ico/Aovi~at
7-T
~wE'Ev . It is
dK/coov0eLv
7rpoqnyr7v
are not driven by means of reins:
noticeable that the mules
perhaps, as on the Burgon Pariathenaic vase (Millingen, Uned.
Mon. pl. ii. Cat. of Vases in Brit. Mus. 569), the driver controlled the animals by voice and the whip, &XrM)1
adciarT(Soph.
Aj. 242), which in our design he holds over them.
The painting which occupies the reverse side probably represents a scene from the Dionysiac festival of the Lenaia, which
was also held in the month Gamelion2: at this feast, we are
told, the procession sacrificed a goat at the Lenaion, and a
chorus (hence called rpay-yicd X0op6s)standing around chanted
a dithyrambic ode to the god: the garlands held in the hands
would indicate the sacrificial nature of the scene : and the object
above the goat may be a mask, typifying the scenic contests 3
which took place at the time.
The bird on the extreme left does not seem to contribute at
all to the action of the design, and at first sight would appear
Hesych.
uv/17reTo0Avro

21

II., p. 692, VUVLcPFptLa

i 7r0 1rw YOvEWv
'wr-

v4epn

'wa
mvu?opos. Hermann, Lehrb. der Gr.
Ant. III. 215, 26.

2
Hermann, loc. cit. II. p. 396, 2228.
3 Hermann, ibid., and II. p. 399, 5.

This content downloaded from 89.34.228.69 on Sun, 8 Feb 2015 11:10:09 AM

All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions

OF A MARRIAGEPROCESSION.

209

to have been inserted by the artist merely to fill in a blank

space: the key, however, to the interpretation is, I think, afforded
in a comparison with a similar type upon a coin of Selinus:
there we see this very crane or marsh bird, which, by a connection of ideas very common in Greek art, is certainly employed
to represent the marsh itself: applying the evidence thus obtained to our vase, we find that the deity of the temple where
the feast of the Lenaia was celebrated was called Dionysos
Limnaios, or 'the marshy,' on account of the swamp' in which
the temple originally stood : a point which goes far to justify
the attribution I have given of this scene, and is doubly interesting because satisfactory interpretations of these and similar
types on vases are notoriously of rare occurrence.
CECIL SMITH.
1 Cf. Schol. to Ar. Ran. 216, who
quotes Kallimachos, A(paly 8 Xopo-

ord8as +ryov opr'ds. Steph. Byz. s. v.:

Ath. xi. 465 a.

H. S.-VOL. I.

This content downloaded from 89.34.228.69 on Sun, 8 Feb 2015 11:10:09 AM

All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions

PL.VII.

This content downloaded from 89.34.228.69 on Sun, 8 Feb 2015 11:10:09 AM

All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions