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Borghese Vase

The Borghese Vase is an ancient Greek marble vase, now in the Louvre. Shaped like a large krater, it was probably made by a Neo-Attic artist in the 1st century BC. The vase stands 1.72 meters high and 1.35 meters in diameter. Its surface is decorated with a relief showing a Bacchic scene: Dionysus crowned with ivy and holding a thyrsus, Ariadne playing the lyre, and a procession of maenads, drunken satyrs, and sileni. Discovered in 1566 in the Gardens of Sallust in Rome, it later belonged to the Borghese family and was admired in the Villa Borghese. In 1807 it was purchased by Napoleon and taken to Paris, where it entered the Louvre collection.

Borghese Vase relief with a satyr playing a double flute between two draped women
Detail of the Borghese Vase showing a satyr playing the aulos between two women.
May 2013 © · CC BY 2.0
Marble relief from the Borghese Vase showing a nude male figure with a staff beside a draped woman playing a lyre.
Detail of the Borghese Vase relief showing a nude male figure and a draped woman with a lyre.
© Unknown artistUnknown artist · Public domain
Borghese Vase relief showing a nude dancing satyr with a staff, beside a lyre player and a small crouching creature.
Detail of the Borghese Vase showing a dancing satyr in relief, with a lyre player and a small crouching figure nearby.
2007 © · Public domain
White marble relief on the Borghese Vase showing a draped woman and a nude man pulling at flowing fabric.
Relief carving on the Borghese Vase showing two figures in a dynamic struggle over a piece of drapery.
© Unknown artistUnknown artist · Public domain
Marble relief from the Borghese Vase showing two figures, one standing and supporting a limp draped figure with a staff behind them.
Detail from the Borghese Vase showing two figures in a marble relief, with one figure supporting another.
© Unknown artistUnknown artist · Public domain

Identification

TitleBorghese Vase
Original namesWaza Borghese; El Vaso Borghese; Vase Borghese; "Ваза Боргезе"
TypeMonumental Neo-Attic krater

Historical context

Mahdia shipwreck dateBeginning of the 1st century BC
DateProbably second half of the 1st century BC, with some sources narrowing it to circa 40–30 BC

Creator

AttributionProbably made by an artist or workshop working in the Neo-Attic style
Place of productionAthens

Discovery and provenance

Discovery date1566; some sources only say 16th century
Discovery locationRome, in the Gardens of Sallust (Horti Sallustiani), probably in the garden of Carlo Muti on the site
Discovery contextRediscovered in a Roman garden occupying part of the site of the Gardens of Sallust; Flaminio Vacca noted it was found at the same time as a Silenus carrying the child Dionysus
Former ownershipBorghese family / Borghese collection
Former display locationVilla Borghese, Rome
Acquisition by NapoleonBought by Napoleon Bonaparte from Prince Camillo Borghese in 1807 or 1808
Moved toParis

Location and ownership

Current locationLouvre Museum, Paris, in the Hall of the Caryatids
Current display dateDisplayed in the Louvre since 1811; previously exhibited in the Galerie Daru

Physical characteristics

BaseLow octagonal pedestal or plinth; the foot is a modern restoration
HandlesOriginally had loop handles supported by satyr or silenus heads; the handles are now lost
StructureExpanded bowl with a deep frieze, everted gadrooned lip, gadrooned lower section, and a low octagonal plinth
FormLarge bell-shaped krater
Diameter1.35 m
Height1.72 m including the base

Materials

MaterialPentelic marble

Technique

Decoration techniqueFigured relief, with a high-relief or bas-relief frieze

Appearance

Rim decorationIonic kymatia and an astragal beneath the outward-turned rim
Lower decorationFluting or gadroons
Upper ornamentTwo intertwined vine shoots and paired satyr heads marking the transition between sections

Iconography and meaning

Main subjectA Dionysian thiasos, or Bacchic procession
Depicted figuresDionysus, Ariadne, satyrs, maenads, and sileni
Other scenesOne figure is shown being anointed; some interpretations identify Apollo and Dionysus rescuing Silenus, who is shown falling and reaching for spilled wine
Interpretive notesSome figures are often identified as satyrs, though some references call them sileni; the draped figures have also been interpreted as maenads, but this identification is disputed
Associated sayingThe scene has been linked to the saying 'The Gods look after children and drunken men'
FunctionA garden ornament for the Roman market; a krater used for mixing wine with water, though this example is far larger than a utilitarian vessel
Dionysus depictionDionysus is shown wearing a panther skin or ivy wreath and holding or playing aulos or thyrsus, depending on the description

Significance

ReceptionHighly admired by contemporary artists and considered one of the finest ancient sculpted vases since the mid-17th century
Reproductions and influenceFrequently copied and imitated in marble, bronze, alabaster, stone, biscuit porcelain, black biscuit, artificial stone, silver, and engraving across Europe
Copies and adaptationsCopied for Versailles, Houghton Hall, Osterley Park, and Saint Petersburg; adapted by Josiah Wedgwood; used by John Flaxman and represented by Hubert Robert
Hubert Robert depictionsHubert Robert repeatedly depicted the vase in imaginary settings, including a monumental capriccio on the Aventine overlooking the Colosseum and scenes in the gardens of Versailles
Related examplesTwo additional similar versions were found in the Mahdia shipwreck