Kerameikos.org: Coral Red

Coral Red (Technique, Concept)

Canonical URI: http://kerameikos.org/id/coral_red

en: Coral red (or “intentional red”) is the term used to describe a color applied to some vases in the 6th and 5th c. BCE. The color was painted onto entire vases (called “red-bodied” vessels) but did not adhere well to the surface. It is debated whether coral red derives from a mixture of red ochre or comes from a refined form of natural clay and yellow ochre that transforms to coral red when fired. The earliest known example of coral red is a kylix signed as potter (“epoiesen”) by Exekias (Munich, Antikensammlungen 2044; BAPD 310403) showing Dionysos reclining inside a ship on the cup’s interior (see Exekias). The technique appears mostly on small shapes and on a volute krater attributed to the Kleophrades Painter (see Kleophrades Painter).