PLATE XXIX
1
Priam before Achilles
Achilles, a beardless young man, half-reclining on a couch beside a table laden with viands, holds in his left hand a piece of meat while with his right hand he raises a dagger or a knife to his lips. He seems to be giving orders to a slave in utter disregard of the presence of Priam, who stands before him at the head of a group of slaves bearing a variety of gifts. The body of Hektor lies limply at full length beneath the couch. In the background can be seen Achilles' shield with its gorgoneion, Corinthian helmet, quiver, and some garments. From a red-figured skyphos, apparently by Brygos (early fifth century b.c.), in Vienna (Furtwängler-Reichhold, Griechische Vasenmalerei, No. 84). See p. 130.
2
Peleus and Thetis
This scene, in which the artist has boldly violated the law of the unity of time, depicts the attempts of Thetis to escape from the embraces of Peleus. In the background the goddess appears in human shape, while her assumption of the form of a dolphin is suggested by the dolphin which she holds in her right hand. The lion-fish between her and Peleus, the flame on the altar, and the serpent above it, similarly suggest other of her transformations. The woman hurrying away to the right may be a sea-nymph. From a black-figured lekythos (fifth century b.c.) with a white ground, found at Gela (Monumenti Antichi, xvii, Plate XIII). See p. 122.
