Greek Vase Painting and the Origins of Visual Humor

In this enjoyable study Alexandre Mitchell uses sixth to fourth century vase painting to explore visual humour in Ancient Greece. He examines humourous scenes thematically looking at men, women and the everyday, at animals in humourous situations, at humourous interpretations of mythology and the comic potential of the satyr, and at caricatures, exploring what they reveal about Greek society and attitudes, and how they contributed to reinforcing social cohesion. The focus of the study is on Athens and Boetia, and the development of visual, satirical humour in this fashion is clearly linked to the development of Athenian democracy.