Grave stelai were first made in Athens from the end of the fifth century. Stelai depict the deceased in poses ranging from a glimpse from everyday life in the fifth century to stylistic contemplative poses at the end of the fourth, but all stelai are personal representations of departed loved ones.

On the epistyle there is an epitaph, ΗΓΗΣΩ ΠΡΟΞΕΝΟ, stating that the deceased is Hegeso, daughter of Proxenios. In general, stelae can be seen as a retrospective funerary art, that typically articulate a society’s ideals of social living through their depiction of a domestic sphere.

Callimachus
Grave Stele of Hegeso/Artists

Grave markers and other memorials to the dead often display a variety of messages that usually represent or describe the individuals buried. Some take the form of epitaphs or verbal descriptions, but much of what is communicated is accomplished through the use of an elaborate vocabulary of visual symbols or icons.

Between Graves IV and V, five golden masks were unearthed, including the Mask of Agamemnon discovered in Grave V. Boars’ tusks were found in Grave IV. Additionally, gold and silver cups were discovered, including the Silver Siege Rhyton.

They consist of tall sculpted stone shafts or slabs and are often associated with low circular stones referred to as altars, although their actual function is uncertain. Many stelae were sculpted in low relief, although plain monuments are found throughout the Maya region.

Content: Hegeso is seated on a klismos (chair) and is selecting jewelry from a box her servant hands her. Content: VERY UNCOMMON as it depicts an intimate scene inside of the household. A woman’s daily life is a rare depiction. Content: One person is commonly seated, and Hegeso is much larger (hierarchal scale).

Classical period
See the mastery of form developed in the Classical period translated to private art on this solemn gravestone.

Sculpture
Grave Stele of Hegeso/Forms
The stele stands at a height of 1.58 m and dates back to approximately 400 BCE. The monument is a relief sculpture carved from pentelic marble (the marble of Athens) and was discovered in the Kerameikos Cemetery in Athens as part of the Koroibos’ family plot.

The purpose of tomb paintings was to create a pleasant afterlife for the dead person, with themes such as journeying through the afterworld, or deities providing protection. The side view of the person or animal was generally shown, and paintings were often done in red, blue, green, gold, black and yellow.

monument – a grave marker, usually one with sorne fanciness and size. Motif – any more or less standardized artistic theme or representation, such as a rose, cherub, or urn-and-willow. mound – a pile of earth or similar material erected over a grave as a form of marker.

nineteen bodies
A total of nineteen bodies – eight men, nine women, and two children – were found in the shafts. The shafts contained two to five bodies each, except for Grave II, which was a single burial.

These stelai mark the burial sites of the Mycenaean dead, much like modern headstones. At least 21 stelai have been discovered from Grave Circle A, with 12 having identifiable relief sculpture. Most were upright, rectangular slabs of oolithic limestone, ranging in date from 1600 to 1500 BCE.

From around 450, Athenian funerary monuments increasingly depicted women, as their civic importance increased. The Grave Stele of Hegeso, most likely sculpted by Callimachus, is renowned as one of the finest Attic grave stelae surviving (mostly intact) today.

At least 21 stelai have been discovered from Grave Circle A, with 12 having identifiable relief sculpture. Most were upright, rectangular slabs of oolithic limestone, ranging in date from 1600 to 1500 BCE.

The Grave Stele of Hegeso, most likely sculpted by Callimachus, is renowned as one of the finest Attic grave stelae surviving (mostly intact) today.