(3) Gerhard’s next class is that of the Panathenaic amphorae, which have a long body shaped something like a top, and tapering sharply downwards; the mouth, handles, and neck are small, as is also the foot (Fig. 26). It is so called as being the characteristic form of the earlier (sixth-century) Panathenaic prize-vases, but is also occasionally found in the ordinary fabrics. This type, together with the two following examples, not mentioned explicitly by Gerhard or the other early writers, form the class of “black-bodied” amphorae, as they may conveniently be termed, in order to distinguish those with panel-decoration from those in which the body is entirely covered with red glaze (see below). (4) The second variety of “black-bodied” amphora (Fig. 27.) is closely akin to the Panathenaic, but the body is better proportioned. It is characterised by the wide mouth in the form of a thick ring, the cylindrical handles, and the concave curve of the shoulder. From the style of the paintings it is probable that this variety must be placed early in the black-figure period. [Illustration: FIG. 27. PANEL-AMPHORA.] (5) This type, on the other hand, is later in the period, being developed out of the last, from which it is marked off only by the form of the handles, which are broad and flanged, and often decorated with patterns. These vases are mostly of large size, and are transitional, some R.F. varieties being known. The paintings on them are in the style of Exekias, Andokides, and Euthymides (see for an example Plates XXXI., XXXII.). (6) The shape of the “red-bodied” amphora (Fig. 28) is peculiar to the black-figure period.[539] Its characteristic features are the straight, cylindrical neck, with its chain of lotos-and-honeysuckle, the width of the shoulder, and the ribbed handles, formed from moulds in two or three parallel pieces. Artistically it is far superior to the black-bodied, and includes some of the finest specimens of B.F. painting (as in the vases of Exekias), while the decorative element reaches the perfection of beauty and symmetry. [Illustration: FIG. 28. RED-BODIED AMPHORA.] (7) The red-bodied amphora seems to have been the prototype of what is the most characteristic form of the red-figure period—the so-called “Nolan” amphora (Fig. 29).[540] These have been largely, but not exclusively, found at Nola, whither they seem to have been imported in large numbers from Greece. The whole vase is covered with black, and the decoration confined to one or two figures each side, while the elegant and beautiful outline, the lustre of the varnish, and the restraint of the designs combine to render these perhaps the most beautiful products of Athenian ceramic art. The handles are sometimes four-sided, more often ribbed, and sometimes formed of two twisted strands, produced by rolling up the soft paste; the general outline is that of the last class, but the proportions are far more slender and graceful. [Illustration: FIG. 29. “NOLAN” AMPHORA.]