Tekmessa covering the corpse of Ajax
Red-figured kylix (type B). Attic.
Attributed to Brygos Painter (active about 490—470 BCE).
Terracotta.
490—480 BCE.
11.2 × 39.1 × 31.4 cm. Inv. No. 86.AE.286.Los Angeles, John Paul Getty Museum, Getty Villa in Malibu

Tekmessa covering the corpse of Ajax.

Red-figured kylix (type B). Attic.
Attributed to Brygos Painter (active about 490—470 BCE).
Terracotta.
490—480 BCE.
11.2 × 39.1 × 31.4 cm.
Inv. No. 86.AE.286.

Los Angeles, John Paul Getty Museum, Getty Villa in Malibu.

Origin:
By 1967 until 1986: Walter Bareiss, American, born Germany, 1919—2007 and Molly Bareiss, American, 1920—2006 (Stamford, Connecticut), sold to the J. Paul Getty Museum, 1986.
Description:
He must not be seen! I will cover his body, I will wrap him completely in my mantle. No one who loved him could bear to see the dark blood pouring from his nostrils and the raw wound in his breast.

So declared Tekmessa when she discovered the body of her dead lover Ajax in an Athenian tragedy by the playwright Sophokles. Ajax was one of the greatest of the Greek heroes in the Trojan War. The matter of his suicide was recounted in epic poetry now lost to us, but Athenian vase-painters in the early 400s B.C. drew on this tradition in showing his death.

The interior of this red-figure cup attributed to the Brygos Painter shows Ajax impaled on his sword and Tekmessa running to cover the body. The corpse lies supine, with the head cast back, beard projecting upwards, and hair trailing behind the head. Beneath Ajax, the Brygos Painter attempted to convey the texture of the pebble beach where the hero went to die.

The exterior of the cup presents the events leading to Ajax’s suicide. After Achilles had been killed, Ajax recovered his body from the Trojans. He expected to be rewarded with Achilles’ armor, but Odysseus, who had fought off the Trojans as Ajax carried off the corpse, also laid claim to the armor. One side of this cup shows the two heroes with swords drawn, quarreling over who deserves the prize. Their comrades have to restrain them as Agamemnon tries to keep them apart. On the other side, the Greeks cast votes in the form of stones piled on a low platform in front of the opponents. The despondent Ajax clutches his bowed head, having lost by one vote.

Credits:
(cc) 2018. Photo, text: The J. Paul Getty Museum (CC BY-SA 4.0).
Digital image courtesy of the Getty’s Open Content Program.
THE GALLERY OF ANCIENT ART
Keywords: κεραμικά ceramics clay terracotta ceramica keramik céramique ελληνική μυθολογία mythologia graeca greek mythology mitologia greca griechische mythologie grecque ελλάδα grecia graecia hellas greece griechenland grèce αἴᾱς τελαμώνιος μέγας αίας ο ajax hero the great telamonian eroe aiace telamonio held aias der telamonier große héros τέκμησσα tekmessa tecmessa tecmesse τρωικός πόλεμος bellum troianum trojan war guerra di troia trojanischer krieg guerre de troie technique tecnica vasenmalerei αττική attika attica attic attique ερυθρόμορφος red figure red-figure red-figured a rosse rotfigurige rotfiguriger à figures rouges cup bowl coppa κύλιξ kylix cylix type b tipo typ female dress clothes clothing garment abbigliamento femminile damenbekleidung vêtements pour femmes γυναικεία ρούχα ensis sword spada schwert épée ξίφος σπαθί vagina scabbard sheath fodero guaina scheide fourreau θήκη balteus baldric balteo wehrgehänge earring earrings orecchino orecchini ohrring ohrringe boucle d’oreille barba barbatum beard bearded man uomo barbuto bart bärtiger mann barbe homme barbu γενειάδα γενειοφόρος άνθρωπος taenia tainia band ribbon fillet tenia tänie binden tænia ténia ταινία tondo medallion medaillon medaglione médaillon suicidium suicide suicidio suizid αυτοκτονία meander meandros meandro mäander méandre μαίανδρος terrakotta terre cuite by brygos painter pittore brygos-maler peintre death of morte covering corpse copre il cadavere inv no 86.ae.286
History of Ancient Rome