3-047-511 - Heritage Art/Heritage Images

Attic Red-Figure Oinochoe (Shape III, Chous), about 420 BC. Pitcher with Knucklebone Players. Additional Info: Three boys wearing leafy crowns play knucklebones on this Athenian red-figure oinochoe. This special form of jug, called a chous, was used during the Anthesteria, a three-day festival in honor of Dionysos, the god of wine. On the first day of the festival, the new wine was opened; a drinking contest on the second day used these jugs to hold a standard amount of wine. The prevalent role of children in the decoration of choes presumably reflects the importance of the festival to children. On the second day of the festival, in addition to the drinking contest, three-year-old boys were formally accepted into their fathers' kinship groups, becoming part of the community. The chous was found at the Etruscan site of Vulci, suggesting it had been exported during antiquity. It was later acquired by Martine de Béhague, the Comtesse de Béarn (1870-1939), who travelled the world to build up her eclectic collection.