Hydria with Herakles and Triton

Place of OriginAthens, Greece; reportedly found in Vulci, Italy.

Dateabout 540-530 BCE

DimensionsH (to lip): 17 7/32 in. (43.7 cm); Diam (mouth): 9 7/16 in. (24 cm); Diam (shoulder): 12 7/32 in. (31 cm); Diam (foot): 6 1/2 in. (16.5 cm)

MediumBlack-figure ceramic; wheel-thrown, slip-decorated earthenware with incised details

ClassificationCeramics

Credit LinePurchased with funds from the Florence Scott Libbey Bequest in Memory of her Father, Maurice A. Scott

Object number

1956.69

Not on View

DescriptionThis black-figure hydria features Herakles wrestling Triton on the main panel, Athena mounting a chariot above, and a horse race below.

Label TextThis ancient Greek water jar unexpectedly influenced European modern art. In 1898, Austrian artist Gustav Klimt (1862–1918) painted Pallas Athene, a portrait of the Greek goddess of wisdom and war. In the background, he included a small but striking image of Herakles wrestling Triton—a direct reference to this specific vase. Herakles (Hercules in Roman mythology) was a legendary Greek hero famous for his strength and adventures, known as the Twelve Labors. Triton, a sea god, was usually shown as a half-human, half-fish figure. Klimt, one of the founders of the Vienna Secession movement, often looked to ancient Greek art for inspiration, reimagining its mythological stories in a bold, decorative style that broke away from traditional academic painting. Klimt knew this vase because of its prestigious history. It first belonged to the famous 19th-century collection of Edme-Antoine Durand (1768–1835) , and later to that of Comte James Alexandre de Pourtalès-Gorgier (1776–1855), a Swiss-French aristocrat and art collector. His collection was widely studied, published, and admired, meaning that even after it was sold at auction in 1865, images of this vase remained known to scholars and artists. Through such connections, this ancient vessel found new life in the world of modern art, showing how classical themes continued to inspire artists centuries after they were created.Published References

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Exhibition History

Tampa, Tampa Museum of Art; Hanover, VT, Hood Museum of Art, Poseidon and the Sea: Myth, Cult, and Daily Life, June 14, 2014-Mar. 15, 2015, cat. 10.