On the front panel the return of Protesilaus to the world of living from the realm of the dead and his meeting with Laodamia are depicted. In terms of the narrative this is a continuation of the relief on the left side of the sarcophagus, where Protesilaus asks Pluto for a meeting with Laodamia in the world of the living.
At the edges the relief is framed by figures of the Moon and the Sun (Selene and Helios; Hecate and Phoebus; Diana and Apollo; Night and Day). The gazes of the gods are directed towards the viewer standing in front of the sarcophagus.
The Moon is represented by a female figure dressed in a long tunic. A peplos, draped over her shoulders over the tunic, curves above her head, forming an arch. A crescent moon is visible on her head. The arched peplos and the crescent moon are characteristic details of Selene’s iconography (as, for example, depictions of Selene on sarcophagi with the myth of Endymion). In her hands the Moon holds burning torches pointed upwards. The right hand with the torch was lost during the bombing of Naples in 1943, when the sarcophagus suffered severe damage. However old images (drawings and a photograph) have survived, in which the right torch is clearly visible. Two torches are also mentioned in descriptions of the sarcophagus written in the 19th and early 20th centuries. This detail of the iconography allows the figure to be identified as Hecate.
The Sun is depicted as a nude male figure of ideal proportions, facing the viewer. His head is crowned with a seven-rayed corona (corona radiata), and his left shoulder is covered by a short chlamys – typical iconographic attributes of Helios (see, for example, the sarcophagus with the myth of Phaeton). His right hand is raised in a cautionary gesture, possibly signifying the end of the young couple’s meeting. In his slightly bent left hand Helios helds a whip, with which he drives the horses harnessed to his chariot.
Selene and Helios stand in static poses. They do not participate in the events but merely signify the time of the meeting: from moonrise to sunrise. According to another, rarer version, the Moon (Diana, Hecate) symbolizes the underworld, from which the hero of the myth heads to the world of the living, personified by the Sun.
On the left side of the relief, Protesilaus is rapidly emerging from the gates of Hades. A bearded old man of imposing appearance, wearing a chlamys that almost reaches his knees, points the way for him. According to the main version, this is Hades, and the elongated object in his left hand is a staff with which he drives the shades of the dead into his kingdom (Pindar). The clear portrait resemblance of the old man to Hades on the left side panel of the sarcophagus supports this identification. There is another version according to which this is Charon. The weakness of the latter version is the absence of a boat – the constant attribute of the ferryman of souls across the Styx.
Hades is handing Protesilaus over to Hermes (Mercury), who acts as a psychopomp – the guide of souls of the deceased to the underworld. It is Hermes, according to most ancient authors (Hyginus, Apollodorus, Lucian), whom Hades ordered to escort Protesilaus to earth. Hermes is naked, with a chlamys falling from his left shoulder. On his right forearm, the surviving fragments of a caduceus are visible. On Hermes’ feet, one can discern almost completely worn-off winged sandals.
In the center of the relief is the figure of a young maidservant in a long tunic. She is running to Laodamia with joyful news. Her raised left leg and flowing himation, thrown over her shoulder, emphasize her movement. The maidservant’s head is turned towards Protesilaus, and her hands are gesturing excitedly.
The compositional center of the relief is the figure of Laodamia, who rises upon hearing the news. She is dressed in a chiton and himation. The upper part of her torso on the relief is heavily damaged, but old drawings and a photograph from the early 20th century show that Laodamia’s left shoulder and breast are bare. Her gaze is fixed on Protesilaus; she raises her right hand in a gesture of astonishment and joy, with her palm facing forward. With her left hand, Laodamia leans on a small oval object, tied across with a strap (lorum) and with loops on both sides. The lower part of Laodamia’s left arm with this object was completely destroyed in 1943, however, they are clearly visible in the aforementioned drawings and photograph taken in times when the sarcophagus was intact. Some authors described this object as a patera for sacrifices, or even an egg, but G. Minervini’s identification is more convincing; he believes it is a tympanum for Dionysian ceremonies and supports his opinion with references to other ancient reliefs depicting similar tympana. Exactly the same object, which is undoubtedly a tympanum that has fallen from the hand of a sleeping satyress, can be seen on the relief of a sarcophagus with Bacchic scenes in the Naples Archaeological Museum.
Behind Laodamia a bent figure of an elderly woman, apparently a wet nurse, with her head covered and in a long tunic is visible. Her gaze is directed at the maidservant who brought the news; extending her hand towards her, she asks her something. With her left hand, she helps Laodamia to stand up to meet her husband. On the sarcophagus in its current state, the wet nurse’s left arm below the elbow is missing due to damage to the relief, but it is clearly discernible in old drawings and the photograph.
Behind the wet nurse, a young maidservant in a long tunic with her left shoulder bare enters the room. On her head, she carries a plate of fruit for sacrifice (Hyginus) and holds it with her right hand; in her left hand a short staff is visible. Perhaps she is about to inform Laodamia that everything is ready for the sacrifice before the statue of Protesilaus.
The interior to the right of the women, separated from them by a curtain, serves as an illustration for Hyginus’s story. In the foreground, a small altar with firewood prepared for sacrifice is prominent. To its right stands a herm of Dionysus. In the background a statue of Protesilaus covered with fabric and seen in profile is visible.
The action in Laodamia’s palace takes place against the backdrop of a curtain (parapetasma), the left end of which is attached to the wall, while the right end is held by a young woman, who plays a purely decorative role. Curtains are frequently encountered on sarcophagus reliefs, where they can serve various functions: acting as a background, defining the boundaries of a scene or demarcating its internal spaces. In this case, the hanging ends of the curtain denote the boundaries of the palace and, moreover, divide its chambers into a right part with the altar, herm, and hero’s statue, and a left part, where Laodamia, her nurse, and a servant receive the news of Protesilaus’s return. The servant, bringing them this news, crosses the boundary of the curtain, i.e., literally "runs into the palace."
In the left part of the relief, a young woman rushes towards Protesilaus. She, like the reclining Laodamia, is dressed in a chiton and himation, and her left shoulder is also bare; her right hand is raised in a welcoming gesture, her open palm turned towards Protesilaus. In her left hand, she holds an oval object. According to the testimony of researchers who saw the undamaged sarcophagus, this object bears a complete resemblance to the one held in the left hand of the reclining Laodamia ("un oggetto che ci sembra affatto identico a quello che tien Laodamia... sono assolutamente simili tra loro ed ambedue hanno nel mezzo una sola piccola tenia o loro" — G. Minervini). This figure is traditionally identified as a servant sent by Laodamia to meet Protesilaus (variant: having run out of the palace upon seeing Protesilaus), however, such an interpretation seems questionable, primarily from a narrative perspective. In the central scene, Laodamia is depicted at the moment she is just receiving the news of Protesilaus’s arrival and has not yet had time to give orders to her servants. Moreover, it is difficult to imagine that the main role in the key scene of the spouses’ meeting would be given to a servant — this contradicts the content and meaning of the myth. It should also be noted that the sculptor used several details to indicate to the viewer the identity of the reclining Laodamia and the young woman meeting Protesilaus: they are dressed identically, their right hands are raised in a similar gesture, and in their left hands, they hold the same object. The outermost figures in this scene are almost mirror images and frame it, serving as a kind of “compositional brackets” (expression by N. B. Kampen). Finally, the four characters to the right of Selene form a cohesive, complete composition in which a woman running from the palace towards Protesilaus is without a doubt Laodamia.
Thus, the frontal relief of the sarcophagus consists of three scenes, arranged from right to left (this order is also found on some other sarcophagi), and separated by vertical figures of the outermost participants:
Scene one (right side) — the shrine with the statue of Protesilaus in Laodamia’s palace.
Scene two (central part of the relief) — Laodamia receiving the news of Protesilaus’s return.
Scene three (left side) — Protesilaus emerges from Hades to the earth where he meets Laodamia