The Departure of Triptolemos
by Stephen Marsh

Image five this week shows the story of The Departure of Triptolemos. Triptolemos is sitting on his winged throne, ready to embark on a mission to teach the mortals agriculture. We know this is a man because he is a red figure, and the absence of a beard tells us he is not an elder god. To identify this figure we can use another vase which shows the same image, only more completely. The Attic red figure Skyphos by Mackron is a very close parallel to the pot we are trying to identify. This vase shows Triptolemos sitting on a winged throne, holding stocks of grain and a phial. Persephone stands in front of him with a torch and a pitcher. Behind her is the nymph Eleusis who is Triptolemos' father. Behind Triptolemos is Demeter with stocks of grain.

This image depicts the story of the departure of Triptolemos. Demeter reveals the knowledge of agriculture, shown by her giving him the grain. Triptolemos then spreads it across the earth as he travels through the sky on his chariot drawn by winged dragons. This was made for him by Demeter and is shown on the vase by the throne equipped with wings and wheels. The presence of Persephone, Demeter, and Eleusis, as well as the illustrations of grain and the winged throne, clearly identify the story.

Our picture shows only Triptolemos and no one accompanying him, which would make this story hard to identify if it were not for the Syphos vase. The two pictures of Triptolemos are almost identical, which allows us to determine that both pots depict the same story. His pose, arm position, and the image of the winged throne all match exactly to the other vase. Details such as the appearance of his robe and his face are nearly exact matches. The only dissimilarities are that Triptolemos holds a scepter instead of wheat, and does not have the phial. Also the bearded snake is not present on the throne, but this is not significant; it is only a decoration for the throne. The vase by Makron shows The Departure of Triptolemos very thoroughly, and although Image #5 is much more ambiguous, we can draw parallels between the two and correctly identify the figure.

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