Episode 35: The Judgment of Paris
In this episode we treat the famous Judgment of Paris, the fateful moment when Trojan Paris selects Aphrodite as “the most beautiful,” setting off a chain of events that leads to the very destructive Trojan War. There are many versions, many of which are quite funny. Here is a link to Lucian’s humorous take (click and scroll to the bottom). A more modern and very funny translation is in the Anthology of Classical Myth (translation by Stephen M. Trzaskoma). Enjoy!
Drawing of an ivory comb from Sparta, perhaps the earliest image of the judgment of Paris (Athens, National Museum 15368). Drawing by R. M. Dawkins (1929).
The famous Chigi vase (640 BC) with what is almost certainly the judgment of the goddesses (named). Now at the Villa Giulia (inv. No. 22679) in Rome, which houses some of the most incredible Etruscan materials from antiquity.
A wall painting from a tomb from Cerveteri (Italy) from around 550 BC (the Boccanera Tomb, now in the British Museum). The judgment of the goddesses is on the left. Can you tell which goddess is which???
A Roman-era mosaic from Antioch on the Orontes (first half 2nd century AD) showing the judgment—the goddesses here have attributes that clearly identify them.
A fresco from Pompeii (House of Jupiter), with Paris—dressed in eastern garb, Mercury with his caduceus, with Juno (Hera), Venus (Aphrodite) and Minerva (Athena) from left to right. Aphrodite, as in a number of accounts, is scantily clad.
From the House of Venus in Pompeii—the waterway may represent the Hellespont, which divides Asia from Europa. Can you tell which goddess is which?
A painting by Joachim Wtewael, combining the judgment (left) with Eris’s throwing the apple into the wedding of Peleus and Thetis (right, back). 1615, now in the National Gallery.
A modern reinterpretation by the artist Charles Bell (1986), who was fond of using vintage toys (here using action figures) in new and innovative ways. Can you identify the American icon representing Aphrodite? And do you see a little bit of a Ken doll and a GI Joe?
Credits:
Written by Reilly Salisbury
Narrated by R. Scott Smith
Voice Acting and Sound Editing: Jackson Scheele
Music: Jared Sims