A. Zeus.
The way in which Zeus is represented is not characteristic:
neither the position, nor the cloting, nor the size of the
sitting figure in relation to the standing figures is
characteristic, since evry sitting person could have been
represented in the same way. Often the gods is represented
grasping a staff in one hand, a thunderbolt in the other hand,
sitting on a throne. Of these attributes only the thunderbolt
is typical of Zeus. The throne is the attribute of rulers:
many other monarchs are represented sitting on a throne. The
staf is the most insignificant attribute because almost
everybody, both deities and human beings, can be represented
with a staff. In the more extensive representations Zeus
without exception is seen on the central position. Furthermore
he usually is represented in profile to the right. The
position Zeus takes up has to do with the role he fulfils in
the myth: not Athena, but Zeus is the key figure in the myth!
So for clarity's sake it might be better to speak about the
myth of Zeus giving birth to Athena. The fact he is
reepresented to the right might have had a symbolic meaning:
in fighting scenes of the same period the final victors
preferably are represented to the right.; on pictures of the
murder of king Priamus he usually is represented in opposite
direction.
B. Athena.
Athena can be identified easily by her attributes: helmet,
spear and aegis. [The aegis is described in the Iliad, the
second book: "..and with them went Athena of the flashing
eyes, wearing her speldid cloack, the unfading everlasting
aegis, from which a hundred tassels flutter, all beautifully
made, each worth a hundred head of cattle.] Usually she is
represented in a very smaal size above the head of Zeus. For
lack of space the small figure of Athena often verlaps the
ornamental border at the top of the picture and some details
often are difficult to distinguish or even omitted. Sometimes
only a bust or a helmet is seen. No doubt it is also lack of
space that made artists represent Athena standing on the lap
of Zeus or omit her completely. In the case Athena has
represented standing on the lap of Zeus there is something to
be said for the idea this is a matter of contamination with
the birth of Dionysos.
C. The other deities (Viz. Summary I: the deities).
C.1. The gods.
Only five gods occurs frequently: Ares, Hermes, Apollo,
Poseidon and Hephaistos. Hephaistos, the only god playing a
certain role in the ancient literature about the birth of
Athena, is seen the least frequent. When we leave aside the
fragments of pottery and the vases on which Athena is not
seen, we at once remark the material can be divided in two
groups: one group of pottery (pottery belonging to Group E ~
Exekias) on which Hermes, Apollo and Ares are seen on fixed
positions (Viz. Summary II: The [male] gods);
each of these gods can be substituted by Poseidon. Hephaistos doesn't occur
at all; an other group of vases, distinguished by the fact
that Ares doesn't occur at all, Apollo only rarely and
Hephaistos often. This group is less uniform then the first
group (Group E).
C.2. The goddesses.
Because it is difficult to identify the goddesses there can be
said not much about them. Far too easy the goddesses on both
sides of Zeus have been considered as Eileithyai (midwives).
They should be characterised by their gestures. But a
comparison (Viz. Summary III: The Gestures of the Goddesses)
shows no argument can be token from these gestures about the
identity of the goddesses: at least eight different gestures
are found, and it would be incorrect to go as far as to say
one of these gestures can be considered as a "gesture of
delivery" and so is a distictive feature for Eileithyai.
It would be not very difficult to point to other pictures with
figures, meeting each other and making identical gestures.
The pictures on vases belonging to the second group show a
tendency to symmetry: usually there is a goddess at each side
of Zeus, and they are each other's mirror image. Has this be
done to characterize them as Eileithyai? The pictures
belonging to the first group usually show only one goddess,
seen at the right side of the picture.
Only in very few cases a goddess aside of Zeus can be
identified: when het name has been added (Eileithya 2x,
Demeter 1x). Probably two times Hera can be identified
(no C15, group E; C21, group E; viz. descriptions). In general
can be concluded the artists didn't expend considerable effort
to characterise the goddesses.
D. Some attributes.
D.1. The thunderbolt.
Usually the thunderbolt is represented by two lotus flowers,
the bottoms against each other joined together with two double
volutes forming a handle. Different types occur although on
pictures belonging to group E fewer differences are sen than
on those which do not belong to this group.
D.2. Thrones.
On representations belonging to group E Zeus is represented
sitting on a throne, except for one. On pottery not belonging
to this group Zeus usually is seen sitting on a chair.
D.3. Figures underneath the throne.
On almost all representations with a throne a little figure is
seen under the seat. Possibly these figures originally have
been meant as ornaments of side and/or front panels of the
throne, as we know them from ancient Egypt and the Near East.
It seens as if these figures have come to live in Greece. For,
although it is not always possible to establish if such a
creature is situated under the throne alive and well or not,
there are also cases in which it is beyond doubt: the owl,
seen on nr. C1 is the same as the owl seen under the throne of
nr. C16; and there is not any indication the goddess
positioned under the throne of nr. C23 is a part of this
throne. Since we meet such figures positioned under chairs as
well (viz. Richter, Furniture) it is clear that at least some
artists by these figures have thought to living beings.
Stylistically these figures remind to the lions, birds,
persons and other creatures on pottery belonging to the
Corinthian style: possibly these beings owe their continued
life to artists, who felt annoyed at the empty space
underneath these pieces of furniture. If these creatures have
a symbolic meaning is hard to say; the question can only be
answered in general: of course some of these motives have been
chosen with purpose: so for instance the owl, referring to
Athena. Possibly this goes for other figures as well, but we
do not know it by lack of information.
D.4. The owl.
The owl occurs five times: in all cases it concerns pottery
belonging to group E. The owls look like each other and are
the spitting image of the owl seen on the most ancient coins
of the citu-state of Athens. Without any doubt these owls
refer to Athena and to Athens. Ther has been stated "the owl
is Athena", but this conclusion passes over the significance
of the owl as a political symbol of the city-state.
E. Spatial planning.
One has to imagine the deities, present at the miraculous
birth of Athena, standing in a ring around Zeus. Some of them
are standing further back from the throne than others. It is
clear that the vasepainters had a three-dimensional concept in
mind when painting their pictures, as it can be seen by many
details. For instance: always when there is a goddess at each
side of Zeus the goddess left of Zeus is seen more from the
front then the goddess on the other side, thus rousing the
impression they are not positioned before and behind him. That
this impression is correct is confirmed by the fact that the
goddess at his left is overlapped by the throne, the
footstool, the arm of Zeus or another part of the picture of
the god.
To reduce a three-dimensional concept into a picture involves
problems which have to be resolved when one doesn't content
oneself with a photographic reproduction. The Greek
vasepainters from the sixth century B.C. didn't as may be
clear from the fact they, like the Egyptian artists, didn't
reproduce what they saw but what they considered to be
essential. That's why they didn't like to represent figures
from the front: the goddess underneath the throne on nr C15 is
represented partly in frontal view, partly in profile; head
and feet are seen in profile, the wings in frontal view. Her
cloth consists of a doric peplos, which is open at the sides.
Only when one realizes the upper part of the body is
represented in frontal view and the lower part of the body in
profile it becomes clear she really wears a doric peplos.
As already said: Zeus is not always represented sitting on a
throne (Viz. Summary IV: Thrones, Chairs and Foldingstools).
Thrones usually are represented in profile: because a side
view of a throne is the most characteristic view. Ancient
thrones, which have been recovered, show the palmette
ornamentsm, as reepresented on many of the thrones on which
Zeus is sitting, at the front and the back side. The artist
also in this case felt free to give the legs a quarter turn
for clarity's sake.
When we want to transpose the pictures from the flat suface
into a three-dimensional image, we have to bear in mind the
mentality of the ancient vasepainters. It's beyond doubt that
Zeus is sitting in the middle of the gods. But in fact he also
is turned to us, the spectators - just like the painter of nr.
C14 has represented him. Striking is the fact that also in
this case the ornaments, made on the back, are visible for us.
We may take for granted that the throne, seen on nr. C14 in
fact didn't differ from the throne which is represented on nr.
C8. Only when we assume this spatial planning it becomes
comprehensible how it is possible that all the gods of nr. C18
raise their hands in amazement; and why it is a mistake to
suppose the gods are running away, when their feet are seen
turned away from the throne: these gods are not walking at
all! In fact the feet are positioned side by side. Imagine two
gods, standing together, turned to each other because they are
busy talking to each other, while at the same time they are
looking to Zeus: how to transpose this situation into a flat
picture? There is only one solution: to represent them with
the feet turned to each other and with their faces in profile
turned to Zeus. Often the formation of groups can be derived
from the way in which the feet are represented (viz. for
instance nr. C18).
Conclusions.
When a sitting figure is seen we can only be sure he can be
identified with Zeus if he is grasping a thunderbolt or if he
is surrounded by deities. Since not every picture with a
sitting Zeus can be connected with the myth about his giving
birth to Athena, we put forward the proposition that only in
case the new born goddess is seen we can be certain the
representation can be connected with the birth of Athena. Most
of these pictures belong to a group of vases which have been
painted by Exekias or after the fashion of this potpainter
(Group E). The most distinctive features of this style are an
abundance of details and an almost lack of variety in the
composition; gods are clearly identified by their attributes.
The remaining representastions of Zeus, giving birth to Athena
show less uniformity. In general Zeus is seen in a central
position; usually there is a goddess at each side of Zeus.
These pictures show a tendency to symmetry. Now and then
Hephaistos occurs on these pictures.
There are several so called "Birth of Athena" representations
without Athena: possibly because there is one representation
without the goddess which nevertheless has to be considered as
a "Birth of Athena" (viz. nr. C36), the idea has settled there
also exists a series of representations of Zeus, during the
"prenatal stage".
A more plausible explanation of these representations is the
artist didn't really care about the motive he painted: it
didn't matter as long as people recognised gods, assembled on
Mount Olympus. Only when Hephaistos is seen, this fact might
be an argument to suppose the artist intended to represent
Zeus tormented by headache preceding the birth of Athena.
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Birth of the goddess Athena
© A.E.J. Kaal