The bearded head wears a Persian soft skin hat (kidaris). His furrowed forehead and open mouth suggest fear or pain. On the mouth of the vase is a scene of a mistress and maid. The elegant mistress sits on a chair, gazing at her image in a mirror, while the servant stands holding a box. This servant wears an oriental trouser-suit with a sleeveless patterned ependytes over the top. She is presumably intended to be a Persian slave. In Persia the ependytes was worn by men, but in Athens it was an item of female dress. There are traces of a preliminary sketch for this red-figured scene. This was made around 420–410 BC.