Amasis Wedding Procession

Andrew Delaney

Key facts

Amasis was the Potter not the Painter

17.1cm tall 560-540BC Lekythos Black figure style

Amasis

Probably Egyptian as Amasis is the Greek version of Ahmosis

Had a unique style and signed his work with ‘Amasis made me’

Similar to Exekias, it is likely that Amasis painted and potted his vessels, but since art historians cannot be sure, the artist has been coined with the modern name, the ‘Amasis Painter’

The Amasis Painter invented or was innovative in the following ways:

- he found a new way to depict female flesh – by painting the white slip straight onto the reserved clay area, rather than over the top of the black glaze as earlier artists had done

- he was the first to paint scenes from everyday life

Content Wedding Procession The couple and the best man sit in the

cart which is pulled by donkeys.

A second cart containing 3 men follows the first also pulled by donkeys

2 women and a man flank the donkeys of both carts

The woman at the front of the procession carries 2 torches showing that the procession took place late in the evening

The procession leads towards a house A woman is standing inside the

doorway holding a torch

Shoulder

Depicts 3 women holding hands facing a musician

Then another 3 women holding hands and so on.

Most likely represents dancers and singers