Acragas (silversmith)
Encyclopedia
Acragas was an engraver, or silversmith
, spoken of by Pliny the Elder
. It is not known either when or where he was born. Pliny says that Acragas, Boethus
and Mys
were considered but little inferior to Mentor, an artist of great note in the same profession; and that works of all three were in existence in his day, preserved in different temples in the island of Rhodes
. Those of Acragas, who was especially famed for his representations of hunting scenes on cups, were in the temple of Bacchus
at Rhodes, and consisted of cups with figures of Bacchae and Centaur
s graved on them. If the language of Pliny justifies us in inferring that the three artists whom he classes together lived at the same time, that would fix the age of Acragas in the latter part of the fifth century BC, as Mys was a contemporary of Phidias
.
Silversmith
A silversmith is a craftsperson who makes objects from silver or gold. The terms 'silversmith' and 'goldsmith' are not synonyms as the techniques, training, history, and guilds are or were largely the same but the end product varies greatly as does the scale of objects created.Silversmithing is the...
, spoken of by Pliny the Elder
Pliny the Elder
Gaius Plinius Secundus , better known as Pliny the Elder, was a Roman author, naturalist, and natural philosopher, as well as naval and army commander of the early Roman Empire, and personal friend of the emperor Vespasian...
. It is not known either when or where he was born. Pliny says that Acragas, Boethus
Boethus
Boethus was a Greek sculptor of the Hellenistic age. His life dates cannot be accurately fixed, but he probably flourished in the 2nd century BCE. One source gives his birth place as Chalcedon....
and Mys
MYS
MYS could refer to:* Malaysia; ISO 3166-1 country code MYS.* Masisa S.A.; New York Stock Exchange symbol MYS.* Minnesota Youth Symphonies* Monaco Yacht Show* Mysore Junction, Karnataka, India; Indian Railways station code MYS....
were considered but little inferior to Mentor, an artist of great note in the same profession; and that works of all three were in existence in his day, preserved in different temples in the island of Rhodes
Rhodes
Rhodes is an island in Greece, located in the eastern Aegean Sea. It is the largest of the Dodecanese islands in terms of both land area and population, with a population of 117,007, and also the island group's historical capital. Administratively the island forms a separate municipality within...
. Those of Acragas, who was especially famed for his representations of hunting scenes on cups, were in the temple of Bacchus
Dionysus
Dionysus was the god of the grape harvest, winemaking and wine, of ritual madness and ecstasy in Greek mythology. His name in Linear B tablets shows he was worshipped from c. 1500—1100 BC by Mycenean Greeks: other traces of Dionysian-type cult have been found in ancient Minoan Crete...
at Rhodes, and consisted of cups with figures of Bacchae and Centaur
Centaur
In Greek mythology, a centaur or hippocentaur is a member of a composite race of creatures, part human and part horse...
s graved on them. If the language of Pliny justifies us in inferring that the three artists whom he classes together lived at the same time, that would fix the age of Acragas in the latter part of the fifth century BC, as Mys was a contemporary of Phidias
Phidias
Phidias or the great Pheidias , was a Greek sculptor, painter and architect, who lived in the 5th century BC, and is commonly regarded as one of the greatest of all sculptors of Classical Greece: Phidias' Statue of Zeus at Olympia was one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World...
.