On this big bulging pelike, Herakles strikes again! The action man, his lion’s skin and club are this time in Egypt.
It’s a heroic vignette known almost exclusively from Athenian red-figure vase painting and goes something like this: our Greek hero finds himself in Egypt, shackled and about to be sacrificed by Busiris (a shadowy figure…Theban king? Priest?). But true to indomitable form, he breaks free of his shackles and vanquishes Busiris’ minions who wish him harm. Smack in the center of the bulging vase is an altar and Herakles grasping Busiris by the ankles to bludgeon him upon it, and all around his cowering entourage.
But of real interest here is how the painter has shown the Egyptians. Herodotus, that great 5th century historian/sociologist observed: ‘Egyptians themselves in their manners and customs seem to have reversed the ordinary practices of mankind.’ (trans. A. de Sélincourt)
Everything is backwards-land, including the Nile’s flow, and random customs (some inexplicably weird kneading dough with their feet!?). He is especially shocked at their grooming, noting the men shave their heads (except while mourning) and practice circumcision, which really left Herodotus scratching his head.
And everything this painter has done highlights these last two exciting differences. The priests’ shaved heads made their ears pop out, and each one is angled just so with tunic conveniently tucked up at the center to display that other thing (feel free to zoom in).
One wonders at what the point of the scene was – humorous wonderment for an audience that most likely never leave the Aegean?
