The last play written by Euripides, performed in Athens after his death (in Macedonia) in 407 BCE. In this play, Euripides gives resurrects the chorus for a major role (unlike many of his plays), and presents the disastrous end of a young tyrant who tries to be old fashioned and heroic by resisting the newest religious fad...and yet reflects new logical, skeptical trends by refusing to recognize Dionysus' power.
This Apulian volute crater (c400 BCE--almost exactly the date of the play's production), shows Dionysus popping out of Zeus' thigh and into the arms of Eileithyia, and Greek goddess of childbirth. The baby is hidden from Hera (the "showed her sky" pun in the play), and soon grows into a seductive god of intoxication.
Precisely the kind of scene Pentheus finds so troubling. A maenad in a kind of trance, dancing with her thyrsus while Dionysus looks on. The scene is at night, as is indicated by the maenad holding the torch behind Dionysus. Lucanian volute crater, c410 BCE.
The attractive stranger finally persuades Pentheus to stop attacking the maenads...by first going himself to spy on them. The stranger, of course, is really Dionysus, and betrays Pentheus to the women. In this south Italian red-figure vase (c350 BCE), the maenads are taking hold of Pentheus as Dionysus stands off to the left.
Pentheus is really in trouble now. The maenads are dragging him down, and breaking rocks over his head; his mother, Agave, takes hold of his head from the left. Roman wall painting, Pompeii, House of the Vettii, c.70 CE.
The maenads celebrate with chunks of Pentheus' body, while Dionysus drinks from a large two-handled cup and listens to the flute. Attic red-figure cup, c430 BCE.
