Europa and the Nereids: Wedding or Funeral?

Abstract

Depictions of the abduction of Europa by the bull appear on a small group of Attic red-figure fish plates found in the Black Sea area. These plates are unusual in that they appear to be the only fish plates to bear a mythological theme, they were nearly all found in funerary contexts within a small region, and unlike most depictions of Europa and the bull, the scenes on the fish plates include Nereids among the sea creatures that accompany Europa on her journey to Crete.The presence of Nereids in these depictions helps explain the meaning of the Europa myth, and its use in these funeral sites. This article explores the meaning of Nereids as they appear in this myth and on these particular plates by analogy with their meaning elsewhere.Additionally, the many similarities between Greek perceptions of death and marriage are examined in an effort to explain the use of the Europa myth in a funerary context. It is proposed that the Nereids appear in these depictions as protectresses of Europa on her journeys: her literal sea voyage and her journey from maiden to woman, a journey that was conceived of as a metaphorical passage from life to death to rebirth.