4th century AD. A fragment of a of a large lanx showing part of the scenes of the life of Achilles; the central representation is of King Priam supplicating Achilles for the return of the body of Hector (this scene is also popular on a number of Roman sarcophagi, one of the best being in the lower stone gallery in the Louvre); representing the child Achilles being let by his mother, the nereid Thetis, to be educated by the centaur Chiron, here his horse Nethers absent. 120 grams, 10.5cm (4 1/4"). The scene represents an episode from the Trojan War which forms the backdrop to a great many tales from Greek legend and mythology, presented in its greatest extent in the Iliad of Homer, written in the 8th century BC. The central portion of the Iliad (Books II – XXIII) covers climactic events towards the end of the decade-long siege of the city of Troy in Asia Minor. Homer's other major work, the Odyssey describes the journey of Odysseus, one of the war's central figures, back to his home and his discovery of the events which have taken place in his absence. Other portions of the tale are described in a cycle of epic poems, mainly surviving in fragments and in references elsewhere in Greek literature. Roman poets such as Virgil and Ovid took up aspects of the tale in their own works. Property of a Mayfair lady; formerly in an important London collection formed since 1965. Fine condition.