Volute krater by the Karneia Painter - A side

The main image depicts the procession of Dionysus. The god is in the centre, flanked on the left by a Maenad in an ecstatic trance and a double flute player, and on the right by a Maenad dressed in a chiton and an animal pelt, in the act of raising a torch, and a Satyr leaning on a pillar. On the other side of the vessel, the representations are arranged in two registers: in the upper register, Perseus shows Medusa’s severed head to a group of horrified Silenes, who are fleeing, probably a reference to a satirical drama; below is a ritual dance on the occasion of the Karneia, a Doric festival in honour of Apollo.