Ancient Greek painted pottery is greatly admired, and with good reason. This talk, lavishly illustrated with both slides and video, will attempt to make the beauty of Greek ceramics more readily accessible and comprehensible. It will concentrate on gaining knowledge and understanding of the physical forms, stylistic features, subject matter, composition, emotional content, function and development of ancient Greek pottery, along with the acquisition of an understanding in its historical context of the civilisation studied through its art. Emphasis will also be placed on the relevant social, political and religious contexts: how were the vases created? Why? Who for?