The exhibit
Knossos, Palace. 1450 - 1400 BC
The Cup-bearer fresco is part of the Procession Fresco, which adorned the walls of the corridor leading from the West Entrance of the Palace to the official chambers on the upper storey of the West Wing via the South Propylaeum. This particular wall painting adorned the west wall of the South Propylaeum. It depicts a life-size young man, in the conventional style of rendering the male figure from the Neopalatial period onwards, with dark brown skin. He has a naked torso, slim waist and wide shoulders, muscled limbs, shaven face, and long, wavy locks of hair. He is wearing an ornate belt and loincloth, and various ornaments. His bracelet and an unusual ear-ornament were probably silver, as indicated by their blue colour, while the bracelet with the seal on his wrist confirms that Minoan seals were also worn as jewellery. He is carrying a large conical rhyton, perhaps made of silver with gilt details. The fresco is named after this ritual vessel. Most of the male figures in the grand procession decorating the corridor were similarly dressed.