The vases are for the most part decorated in the same manner, with an elaborate lotos-and-honeysuckle pattern on either side of the neck, and several friezes of figures, usually three, covering the body, of which all but the principal one are composed of animals or monsters. The principal frieze is always the upper one, covering the body from the neck to the middle. The friezes are more numerous on the earlier examples; they become fewer as Corinthian characteristics give way to Attic. Altogether, these vases are remarkably homogeneous, both in style, in shape, and in technique, and it has even been suggested that the whole series is the work of one man; nor is this an impossibility.
An interesting feature is formed by the inscriptions,[[1075]] which are of frequent occurrence. They tend, however, to degenerate into meaningless collocations of letters, which some have thought to represent Corinthian inscriptions misunderstood; but the alphabet is pure Attic throughout, except for the double forms on the Berlin amphora (see below), and a Chalcidian
for Γ on a vase in the British Museum. The artist is fond of giving his figures surnames, and thus we find Hermes styled Κυλλήνιος, “of Kyllene,” Nestor Πύλιος, “of Pylos,” and Ajax [Ὀ]ιλιάδης, “son of Oileus,” a feature which hardly occurs on any other class of vases. The meaningless inscriptions are not easy to account for; certain groups of letters are repeated over and over again, and it has been suggested by Thiersch that they are analogous to the friezes of animals, with their repetitions and combinations. They also seem to serve a decorative purpose by filling up spaces.
The subjects are mainly mythological, with many features of interest. For several the artist seems to have had a decided preference, such as the combats of Herakles with Amazons and with the Centaur Nessos, that of the Lapiths with the Centaurs, the adventure of Troilos and Polyxena from the Trojan legends. Bacchic scenes are altogether wanting, but on many examples a Corinthian type is adopted in their place, representing grotesque dancing figures in various attitudes.[[1076]] Of scenes from daily life, combats of armed warriors and young riders galloping prevail above all others; the latter are, as on the Caeretan hydriae (p. [355]), little more than decorative. Generally speaking, it is doubtful if Loeschcke’s idea of types borrowed from the Peloponnese can be maintained; it is true that some scenes which occur on the chest of Kypselos may be found, but the treatment is not quite the same; and some subjects seem to be rather from an Ionic source. The animals or monsters which form the subordinate friezes include the Sphinx and Siren; the lion, panther, goat, and deer; the eagle, swan, and cock.[[1077]]
Some of the vases call for more than passing mention, especially the remarkable Berlin vase (Cat. 1704) with the Birth of Athena, and the richly decorated specimen recently acquired by the British Museum, with the Death of Polyxena. The former seems to be the earliest example of its subject, and in the number and arrangement of the figures it resembles the fine early Attic amphora in the British Museum (B 147). Its chief interest is epigraphical, in the use of the double forms (Corinthian and Attic) in the same word of the letters E (
) and Κ (Ϙ).[[1078]] Over the figure of Hermes is written Ἑρμῆς εἰμὶ Κϙυέλνιος (sc. Κυλλήνιος), as already noted above. This vase may be regarded as having established the “type” for the subject so long popular on Attic vases, until Pheidias created a new and more ideal version.[[1079]] The Museum vase (Plate [XXIII].) has a very remarkable representation of a subject rare in Greek art, with several unique features.[[1080]] The body of Polyxena is carried in a rigid horizontal position by Ajax Iliades (sc. son of Oïleus) and two others, to the tomb of Achilles, over which Neoptolemos stands to perform the fatal deed. Phoenix, Diomede, and Nestor “of Pylos” are spectators of the act.
The style of the vases as a whole is coarse and clumsy, though it often rises to a greater standard of merit; the lines are often mechanically drawn and lifeless, which may be to some extent the result of imitation. Details of drapery are seldom shown, except that the dresses are often richly decorated with incised patterns, but the folds are never indicated.[[1081]]