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  Magna Graecia: Greek Art From South Italy and Sicily > About the Exhibition > Reggio Calabria & Sybaris > Altar with Scene from a Greek Tragedy (about 400-350 BC)
 
 
<I>Altar with Scene from a Greek Tragedy</I>, 400-350 B.C.<BR>Terracotta, H. 52 cm, Inv. 4083
Altar with Scene from a Greek Tragedy (about 400-350 BC)
Medma
Terracotta, orange-red clay with large white inclusions, mold-made, hand-finished
Museo Archeologico Nazionale di Reggio Calabria, inv. 4083
[Cat. no. 41]

Altar with Scene from a Greek Tragedy (about 400-350 BC)

Used to make offerings in religious ceremonies, sculpted terracotta altars from Medma were produced over a restricted period of time. They illustrate Greek tragedies staged in Athens from the end of the 5th century into the 4th century BC. This example portrays a scene from a Sophoclean drama involving Perseus, who wins the love of Andromeda, daughter of King Cepheus. Here, Cepheus sits on a throne and is greeted by the hero Perseus; the figures are flanked by an archer on the left and a groom on the right. In the play, Perseus promises to free Andromeda from a sea monster sent by Poseidon, the god of the seas.

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