Signifying Lost Potential: The Hare in the Funerary Art of Archaic and Classical Athens

ABSTRACT: This article examines the iconography and function of the hare in Athenian funerary art of the Archaic and Classical periods. The animal appears on a limited number of vases and funerary reliefs decorated with scenes at the grave, images related to the hunt, or depictions of a deceased holding a pet hare. It is almost exclusively associated with male figures, especially of young age. This is due to the animal’s popularity as hunting prey and its highly sexual nature. A live hare in a funerary scene functions as a symbol of untimely death and lost potential for young males, emphasizing that they died before they could marry and produce children that would continue their family line.