Geometric Neck-Handled Amphora (Storage Vessel): Prothesis (Laying out of Corpse), Mourners, Chariots
This neck-amphora bears multiple forms of decoration related to funerary ritual. On the neck panels, mourners beat their heads or tear out their hair. Some surround a bier, a platform where the body of the deceased lies beneath a checkered cloth. Further down, a procession of two-horse chariots moves around the vase, whether headed to the cemetery or the battlefield. The snakes applied to the handles, neck, and rim may all allude to the underworld.
Images courtesy of The Metropolitan Museum of Art (CC0)