The Homeric Hymn to Dionysus and the Dionysus Kylix
The Homeric Hymn to Dionysus and the Dionysus Kylix tell the same story in two very different ways. The Homeric Hymn uses verse to tell the story of pirates kidnapping Dionysus. It describes the crewman discovering that he is a god. The shackles couldn't bind him, "and the withes fell far away from his hands and feet; and he sat there smiling and dark-eyed." The pirates start to understand what's happening, "When the helmsman perceived what this meant, he quickly called upon his shipmates and said: 'Why do you seize and bind this mighty god, you crazy men?'" The crewmen all jumped from the ship and were turned into dolphins. This is depicted in the kylix with the dolphins frolicking around the ship. The hymn describes this in the traditional way, through written word and song. The kylix tells the story through visual art, but it still tells the same story.Â