Garden of Hesperides - Athena, Herakles, Atlas, Hesperide & Hermes
The obverse with Herakles arriving in the Garden of the Hesperides, the youthful hero in his distinctive lionskin approaching from the left, rowing to the shore in the Bowl of the Sun, identified by 'ΗΡΑΚΛΗΣ' above. Fishes around him in the sea.
To his left helmeted Athena striding towards the Garden, holding a spear in her right hand, her scaled aegis over her left, wearing a floor-length belted patterned peplos, a necklace and bracelet, 'AΘΗΝΑΙΑ' above her.
On the shore to the right stands Atlas, holding the curved vault of the heavens, with stars and curved crescent moon, in his upraised hands, a berried wreath in his hair and wearing a patterned calf-length chiton, a bordered himation draped over his shoulders, 'ATΛΑΣ' to his left, a tree bearing the Golden Apples to his proper right side, another on his left with Ladon the snake coiled within it.
And a Hesperid sitting beneath, leaning back on her right hand, wearing a patterned bordered peplos and a diadem, her hair bound in a sakkos, bracelets on each arm, 'EΣΠΕΡΙΣ' above her head.
To the far right of the scene stands Hermes, with one foot resting atop a rock, nude save for a bordered chlamys, carrying a petasos on his back, wearing sandals and carrying his caduceus in his left hand, 'ΕΡΜΗΣ' above his head.
The gaze of all those in the Garden fixed towards Herakles.
The reverse with three draped male figures, the central figure holding a staff, the figure to the left with a strigil and an aryballos, a pair of jumping weights hung between them; groundline of meander and checkered squares, laurel beneath the rim, scrolling palmettes beneath and dotted ovolo around the handles, details and inscriptions in added white and yellow.
An attic red-figured Bell-Krater; attributed to the Nikias painter, circa 410-400 BCE
www.christies.com/en/lot/lot-6009381
Garden of Hesperides - Athena, Herakles, Atlas, Hesperide & Hermes
The obverse with Herakles arriving in the Garden of the Hesperides, the youthful hero in his distinctive lionskin approaching from the left, rowing to the shore in the Bowl of the Sun, identified by 'ΗΡΑΚΛΗΣ' above. Fishes around him in the sea.
To his left helmeted Athena striding towards the Garden, holding a spear in her right hand, her scaled aegis over her left, wearing a floor-length belted patterned peplos, a necklace and bracelet, 'AΘΗΝΑΙΑ' above her.
On the shore to the right stands Atlas, holding the curved vault of the heavens, with stars and curved crescent moon, in his upraised hands, a berried wreath in his hair and wearing a patterned calf-length chiton, a bordered himation draped over his shoulders, 'ATΛΑΣ' to his left, a tree bearing the Golden Apples to his proper right side, another on his left with Ladon the snake coiled within it.
And a Hesperid sitting beneath, leaning back on her right hand, wearing a patterned bordered peplos and a diadem, her hair bound in a sakkos, bracelets on each arm, 'EΣΠΕΡΙΣ' above her head.
To the far right of the scene stands Hermes, with one foot resting atop a rock, nude save for a bordered chlamys, carrying a petasos on his back, wearing sandals and carrying his caduceus in his left hand, 'ΕΡΜΗΣ' above his head.
The gaze of all those in the Garden fixed towards Herakles.
The reverse with three draped male figures, the central figure holding a staff, the figure to the left with a strigil and an aryballos, a pair of jumping weights hung between them; groundline of meander and checkered squares, laurel beneath the rim, scrolling palmettes beneath and dotted ovolo around the handles, details and inscriptions in added white and yellow.
An attic red-figured Bell-Krater; attributed to the Nikias painter, circa 410-400 BCE
www.christies.com/en/lot/lot-6009381