Disability Pride Month is celebrated every July to commemorate the anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), which was signed into law on July 26, 1990. This month, we focus on some of the depictions and lived experiences of people with disabilities represented in TMA’s collection.

This pitcher for wine depicts Dionysos, the god of wine and the theater, reclining on a couch as his wife, Ariadne, pours him some wine. He is surrounded by a satyr, a maenad (one of his female followers, known for their ecstatic dancing), and a dwarf. Dwarves appear in Dionysos’s retinue on many other vessels, indicating a thematic importance or association with the god that would have been understood by ancient viewers.

This figure was likely depicted for comic relief, reflecting the theatrical elements of Dionysian celebrations (emphasized by the mask hanging above the god’s head). His short stature might also evoke the otherworldliness of the Cult of Dionysos, where ordinary rules of nature were said not to apply. This illustrates how deeply embedded harmful representations of dwarfism are in global history, classifying people with dwarfism as humorous or fantastical creatures rather than human beings. 

The Felton Painter, Oinochoe Depicting Dionysos and His Followers. Wheel-thrown, slip-decorated earthenware, about 375 BCE. 8 1/4 x 6 1/4 in. (21.0 x 15.9 cm). Purchased with funds from the Libbey Endowment, Gift of Edward Drummond Libbey, 1967.136. Not on view.*

*Art Minute celebrates the full range of the Toledo Museum of Art’s collection. Not all works featured are on view; some (especially works on paper and textiles) are sensitive to light damage and can only be displayed for limited periods of time. Others may be on loan to another institution or in storage for other reasons.