| the Derveni Krater 340-330 B.C.
bronze -- detail
Archeological Museum, Thessaloníki |
| King Philip's Tomb frieze 336 B.C
Tumulus Museum, Veryína |
| Abduction of Persephone 350-325 B.C.
fresco inside box tomb
Tumulus Museum, Veryína |
| Golden Necklace 4th Century B.C.
from Pella
Archeological Museum, Thessaloníki |
| Gold Olive wreath 350-300 B.C.
from Derveni
Archeological Museum, Thessaloníki |
| Ivory group with Silenus 350-336 B.C.
King Philip's burial trove
Tumulus Museum, Veryína |
| This surprisingly large urn (34 inches tall, 90 pounds) is gold colored because of the high tin content in the bronze. It was used for diluting and blending wine. The detail shows a young Dionysus seated on a rock. | |
The purple color so strikingly evident here is made from cochineal, a dye harvested from tiny marine snails. It was very expensive, and was therefore reserved only for royalty, a resonance that carries forward to the present. |
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This ivory statuette is quite small, barely three inches tall, and so the detailing is unimaginably exquisite. Ivory, being an organic material, usually doesn't fare well over the years, and parts of this piece show considerable effects of damp and time, but the central character, Silenus, is exceptionally smooth and well preserved. |