Water jar (hydria) with the chariot of Achilles dragging the corpse of Hektor

This hydria, used for fetching water, masterfully condenses the climactic final books of Homer's Iliad into a single scene illustrating the killing of the Trojan prince Hektor, the defilement of his corpse, and the burial of the Greek warrior Patroklos, even foreshadowing the ransom of Hektor's remains. On the left, Hektor's parents, Priam and Hekuba, watch in horror as their son's body is dragged around the walls of Troy behind the chariot of his killer, Achilles; Hekuba raises her hands to her head in a gesture of mourning. Achilles steps over his victim onto his chariot, turning to glare defiantly at the grieving parents. On the right, a white mound with a snake at its base represents the tomb of Patroklos; the tiny winged and armed figure in the upper right is his shade, departing for the heavens at the end of the funerary games held in his honor. Framed by the city and this tomb, the central action-the dragging of Hektor's body-happens in both locales in a visual instant, rather than over the many days described by Homer. The female figure who runs across the foreground is Iris, a messenger sent by Zeus to arrange the ransom of Hektor's body.Figures and even events overlap on this vase in an effort to convey each detail of the narrative as completely as possible; decoding the imagery required an intimate knowledge of Homer's works, a point of cultural pride for any elite Athenian. This hydria displays an obvious and unusually strong reliance on the text of the Iliad, yet the composition betrays some artistic liberties as well: whereas in Homer's telling Achilles drives the chariot himself, on this vase a nameless charioteer-a common trope in battle vase paintings-accompanies the Greek hero.