This krater was meant to be used for wine because its calyx flower bottom was big enough to fit a psykter-shaped vase.

The painted figural scenes on the Dipylon vases describe two of the three parts of a proper burial: a prothesis and an ekphora.

It was required by the ancient Greeks to include all of the steps in a funeral because they believed that without it, Hades, god of the Underworld, would not allow the dead to pass over.

Depending on the vase type being made, the clay being used would be settled in tanks to achieve different consistencies.

The vases portrayed scenes and figures of the deceased life and the funerary process that went through to establish the funeral.

[8] The monumental vase is hollow, with a hole at the bottom, indicating that it was not used as a mixing bowl like regular kraters.

Decorations occupy the entire vase, separated into registers containing abstract motifs or figural designs in a dark-on-light style.

The prothesis scene on the Dipylon Krater, features standing women with triangular torsos surrounding a prostrate body underneath a checkered burial shroud.

[1] Underneath, the ekphora scene displays warriors with chariots, hinting out the dead man's military history while the hourglass-shaped shields transporting the body in a funeral procession.

The Dipylon amphora has a long and narrow neck roughly one-third of its size and is decorated with goats and geometric shapes.

The Elgin amphora does not have a hole at the bottom compared to other kraters because it was buried instead of used as a grave marker.

Meanders are Greek key patterns that are a continuous line that folds back and forth that mimics the ancient Maeander River of Asia Minor.