Chiron And Achilles

IV Style, Basilica, Herculaneum

The centaur, Chiron, was the teacher of Achilles. Here, Chiron is demonstrating a musical passage on the lyre. This masterpiece focuses on the tender relationship between master and pupil. Its psychological intimacy is reinforced by the gaze and placement of the figures, by the figural contrasts between Chiron and Achilles, and by the music-lesson theme.