In ancient Greece, vessels with white backgrounds held oil that was used to anoint the deceased during the three-day-long display of the body before burial. This large lekythos, the Greek word for oil container, depicts a youth and a woman at a tomb.

 The young man is seated, with a shield leaning against his leg. The woman, draped in gauzy clothing, holds a lamp. The shield and the conical helmet near the youth's head indicate that the deceased probably served in the military. Vessels like this were placed in graves.

 Most Greek vase painters did not sign their works. Today, names are assigned to the artists based on stylistic similarities, and they are "named" for the location of the first vase identified by a certain hand. This lekythos is attributed to "Bowdoin Painter," who painted a vase that belongs to the collection of Bowdoin College in Maine.