Art Institute of ChicagoPublic domain

Amphora (Storage Jar)

Achilles Painter · 460-450 BCE

Analyst brief

What the record supports

This red-figure terracotta amphora (storage jar), measuring 34.3 × 18.2 cm, dates from 460-450 BCE. It is attributed to the Achilles Painter, an ancient Attic-Greek vase-painter active between approximately 500 and 425 BCE. The vessel is classified within the Arts of Greece, Rome, and Byzantium department, representing Athenian culture.

The amphora's provenance traces back to Augusto Mele of Naples, Italy, from whom it was purchased by the Art Institute of Chicago in 1889 through J.C. Fletcher as an agent. Its acquisition cost was reimbursed by Philip D. Armour and Charles L. Hutchinson. The object was said to be found in Nola in 1881, according to an old register at the Art Institute of Chicago.

This piece has been featured in several exhibitions, including at Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory (1980) and multiple displays at the Art Institute of Chicago (1989, 2012-present). It has also been cited in various academic publications, including *Attic Red-Figure Vase-Painters* by J.D. Beazley and *The Achilles Painter* by J.H. Oakley. No auction price or specific purchase price is provided, only that it was reimbursed.

Generated from the catalogue fields shown on this page. Nartmad does not assert attributions, valuations or prices that no cited source supports.

Provenance

Ownership history

Said to be found in Nola, 1881 [Old Register at the Art Institute of Chicago]. Augusto Mele, Naples, Italy; sold to the Art Institute of Chicago through J.C. Fletcher as agent, 1889; price reimbursed by Charles Hutchinson and Philip D. Armour, 1889.

Recorded by Art Institute of Chicago.

Exhibitions

Exhibition history

Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory, Number 6, March 13, 1980 - May 13, 1980.
The Art Institute of Chicago, "The Human Figure in Greek and Roman Art: From the Permanent Collection," Part 2, Gallery 120A, January 13, 1989 - September 24, 1989.
The Art Institute of Chicago, "Of Gods and Glamour: The Mary and Michael Jaharis Galleries of Greek, Roman, and Byzantine Art," Gallery 151, November 11, 2012 - present.

Literature

Published references

William M.R. French, Notes [on a] journey to Europe with Mr. and Mrs. C.L. Hutchinson starting from New York Sat'y Mch. 9, 1889- , (unpublished manuscript, Art Institute of Chicago Archives), p. 24.
Art Institute of Chicago, Preliminary Catalogue of Metal Work, Graeco-Italian Vases, and Antiquities, December 9, 1889 (Chicago: Early and Halla Printing Company, 1889), p. 41, no. 337.
Daniel Catton Rich, "Five Red-Figures Vases in the Art Institute of Chicago," American Journal of Archaeology, 34 (1930), pp. 162-171.
J.D. Beazley, Attic Red-Figure Vase-Painters, vol. II (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1963), p. 988, no. 9.
J.H. Oakley, The Achilles Painter (Mainz 1997), p. 116 no. 12, pls. 10a and 45e.
Karen B. Alexander, "From Plaster to Stone: Ancient Art at the Art Institute of Chicago," in Karen Manchester, Recasting the Past: Collecting and Presenting Antiquities at the Art Institute of Chicago (Chicago: Art Institute of Chicago; New Haven: Yale University Press, 2012), p. 18.
Elizabeth Hahn Benge, "From Aegina to Andronicus: A Survey of Coinage at the Art Institute of Chicago," in Historia Mundi n. 5 (January 2016), p. 202.

Comparables