| Paintings and mosaics in Pompeii and Ercolano: |
Strolling musicians
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 These
two pictures show the same subject portrayed using different
techniques. The subject is a scene taken from Theophoruméne (The
Possessed), a play by Menander of which thirty lines are extant.
That we are dealing with a recital is not only clear from the
presence of the "rostrum" which is particularly evident in the
mosaic and which in fact is simply an expedient for giving a
little background to the characters and some depth to the scene,
but also from the masks which the three main characters are
wearing on their faces. We recognise the paràsitos by its
aquiline nose and frowning forehead, in the figure of the player
of the tympanum, while the kòlax, or flatterer, in the character
of the cymbal player, wearing a mask with curving nose, flushed
cheeks and shiny forehead; the diàmitros etàira can be
identified as the player of the double-pipes whose hair is tied
up in a headscarf. The fourth character is a child, or dwarf,
with an emaciated face and unkempt hair, wearing a short tunic
typical and following in the train of the festive procession as
it winds its way towards a doorway, whose fixture is partially
visible. These two works are noteworthy on account of the use of
colours which ranges from black-brown in the shaded areas to the
light blue and yellow of the most highly-illuminated parts; this
ability betrays great awareness of the effects that can be
obtained by shifting degrees of colour, and complete mastery of
the technical aspects of painting such as how to obtain shape
and size by use of colour and not merely by outline.
 That the two replicas are independent with respect to each other
- the mosaic is certainly older than the fresco above all
because of the inscription bearing the name of the artist
Dioscouridhs Samios epoihse dating it to 100 B.C., is suggested
by some details which prove that a different model was used for
the fresco compared to the mosaic. While the latter has the
white cloak of the kòlax describing a double almond-shaped fold
at hip level, quite out of keeping with the rest of the clothing,
and the female character does not appear to be resting on the
ground, the fresco, which generally speaking is of rather
indifferent quality, does not display these anomalies; in
addition to which the child is set apart from the other figures.
The original of which these two are reproductions has been dated
to the first half of the 3rd century B.C., on account of the
presence of shading which enhances scenic depth and the absence
of stains for the production of the chiaroscuro effect.
Bibliography: Bianchi Bandinelli in EAA III, s.v. Dioskourides
3° pp.132-133; L. Bernabò Brea, Menandro e il teatro greco nelle
terracotte liparesi, Genova 1987 pp. 189-190, 192, 230-234
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Fonte: MANN
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