Fragment of a Black-figure Plaque: Burial Mourning Scene (Prothesis)

This plaque was used at the grave and depicts the prothesis, the lament over the body as it lay in state. It shows a young girl at the funeral bier. The prothesis represented an ideal of the mourning family, as is evidenced by comparable representations, which in inscriptions identify family members according to their familial relationship, by words such as "mother," "father," and "sister." These scenes also demonstrate the gendered hierarchy of the lament, as grieving women surround the corpse, raising their hands to their heads and pulling at their hair, while men stand further away.