Greece (Attic)

Middle Geometric Attic Krater

3135

Creation Date: Circa 800–775 BCE. Period: The Middle Geometric Period of Ancient Greece (specifically within the broader Geometric Period, c. 900–700 BCE), an epoch marking the rebirth of monumental artistic production, the codification of rigorous abstract geometric syntax, and the reintroduction of human and animal silhouettes into vase painting (prothesis and ekphora scenes).

Funerary Monument and Semeion: Monumental kraters of this scale served primarily as grave markers (semeia) placed over elite aristocratic burials in the Dipylon cemetery of Athens, rather than as functional mixing bowls for wine. Libation and Ritual Purpose: Holes pierced in the bottom of such funerary kraters allowed mourners to pour liquid libations directly into the earth for the deceased, bridging the world of the living with the chthonic underworld.