may be either a ceremonial robe or a wadded cuirass. Apart from all
questions of what kind of incident the artist meant to represent,
the artistic value of his work is unquestionable. It has been said
of this little vase that 'not until the fifth century B. C. should
we find a sculptor capable of representing, with such absolute
truth, a party of men in motion.'

The smallest of the three vases, only 4 inches in height, bears the
representation of a body of soldiers with heads and feet showing
above and below their great shields, which are locked together
into a wall. The shields are evidently covered with hide, as the
bulls' tails still show upon them. But the interest centres in
two figures which stand apart from the others. One seems to be a
chieftain or general; he has long, flowing hair, a golden collar
round his neck, and bracelets on his arms, while in his outstretched
right hand he holds a long staff, which may be the shaft of a lance,
or, more probably, an emblem of authority, like the staves carried
by Egyptian nobles and officials. His legs are covered halfway
up to the knee by a genuine pair of puttees, five turns of the
bandage being clearly marked. He appears to be giving orders to
the other figure, perhaps that of a captain or under-officer, who
stands before him in an attitude of respectful attention. The captain
is slightly lower in stature than his chief, though this may be
due to the fact that room has had to be found for the tall curving
plume of the low helmet which he wears. His neck is adorned with a
single torque, and he carries a long heavy sword sloped over his
right shoulder. Instead of wearing puttees, like his commander, he
wears half-boots, like those on the figurine discovered by Dawkins
at Petsofa. Neither the chieftain nor his officer appears to wear
any defensive armour; their only clothing is a scalloped loin-cloth,
slightly more heavily bordered in the case of the chief than in
that of the soldier; and the modelling of the bodies, with the
indications of muscular development, particularly in the legs of
the chieftain, is exceedingly fine, and of an accuracy marvellous
when the diminutive scale of the figures is considered. The little
vase is a valuable document for the appearance and equipment of
the warriors of those far-off times, but it is also a treasure
of art. 'The ideal grace and dignity of these two figures,' says
Professor Burrows, 'the pose with which they throw head and b