Bellerophon facing the Chimera, black-figure cup

Bellerophon (center right) sits on the back of Pegasus facing down the Chimera (center left). The Chimera raises its left front paw to strike. The mouth of the lion's head is open as if roaring. Its goat head and snake tail are turned left, looking back towards two bearded men holding spears. Another two men holding spears stand behind Bellerophon. A diagonal fragment of the cup is missing erasing the face of the first man behind Bellerophon and a portion of the lower body of the second.

Reconstructed Attic black-figure cup showing Bellerophon fighting the Chimera. Found in Kamiros, Rhodes. © 2012 GrandPalaisRmn (musée du Louvre) / Stéphane Maréchalle.

Online Resources
Musée du Louvre MNB 1745
Subjects
Bellerophon
Chimera
Pegasus
Type
Image
Agent
The Heidelberg Painter
Date
ca. 575/550 BCE
Culture
Greek
Medium
terracotta
Dimensions
h. 13.3 cm; w. 33.5 cm; diameter 24.3 cm
Location
Musée du Louvre
Image Credit
© 2012 GrandPalaisRmn, Musée du Louvre, Stéphane Maréchalle

Chimera of Arezzo

Three-quarter view of Chimera facing right. It's in a half-crouch, front legs outstretched. The lion's mouth is open as if roaring. A goat's head protrudes from the animal's left flank. It is turned away from the viewer and leaning to the side. Drops of blood flow from its neck. The lion's tail is a snake, curved up and over the lion's back. It grasps one of the goat's horns in its mouth. The lion's mane and a line of fur down its back stand up from its body and curved barbs.

Restored Etruscan hollow-cast bronze statue of the Chimera. It is inscribed TINSCVIL ("for Tinia") in retrograde on the right foreleg, a dedication to the Etruscan sky god. The front and rear left lower legs were broken off when the statue was uncovered and subsequently reattached. The snake tail is an 18th-century restoration. Museo Archeologico Nazionale di Firenze inv. no. 1.

Related Content
"New Light on a Master Bronze from Etruria," AJA, July 2010 (114.3)
Online Resources
Image Source
Subjects
Chimera
Type
Image
License
Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike
Agent
Unknown
Date
ca. 400 BCE
Culture
Etruscan
Medium
Bronze
Dimensions
h. 78.5 cm, l. 129 cm
Inscription
TINSCVIL
Location
Museo Archeologico Nazionale di Firenze
Image Credit
Wikimedia: Sailko
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