The form and function of this silver bucket are not very different from a bucket one might find in a home today underneath a sink. The ancient Greeks treasured the splendor  More »

The form and function of this silver bucket are not very different from a bucket one might find in a home today underneath a sink. The ancient Greeks treasured the splendor and elegance of the silver. Surely, this is no ordinary bucket. It was probably the prized possession of the wealthy elite.While a commoner would have used a terracotta bucket, this silver vessel attests to the refined tastes and wealth of its owner. Sparely decorated, the silver is allowed to shine on its own, enhances only by three series of incised rings. The most charming feature of this bucket is the handle. Although it appears quiet ordinary at first, upon further inspection, one notices the ends have been molded to imitate the heads of a duck or such a fowl.While the necessity of a bucket in our homes has not diminished in the last two millenia, surely we have lost some of the beauty and grace over this silver vessel in our modern quest for bigger, cheaper, faster. This bucket reminds us of another era when even the most utilitarian object were made by hand and luxury items were truly luxurious. - (PF.5824)   « Less

The Greek colonies of Southern Italy, known in antiquity as Magna Graecia, were marked by their initial allegiance to the ceramic styles of the Attic mainland. However, over  More »

The Greek colonies of Southern Italy, known in antiquity as Magna Graecia, were marked by their initial allegiance to the ceramic styles of the Attic mainland. However, over the years, native traditions and innovations heavily influenced the works of Magna Graecian potters. Unorthodox forms and painting-styles were seamlessly merged with the standard Greek style, creating distinctive works of art unique to the Hellenistic world. This funerary vessel comes from the region of Canosa, named after the ancient city in northern Apulia. Canosan ceramics are characterized by soft pastel-hued polychrome paint that decorates the surface of the works and reminds us what a vibrant colorful place the classical world really was. Rarely do more than traces of the paint survive the ravages of time, making the extensive pink and yellow hues that decorate this vessel ever more remarkable. This large container features a swollen belly with three spouts and a central handle. An appliqué face of a woman has been attached to the side of the vessel, directly under one of the spouts. Women are one of the most popular subjects in Canosan iconography, and the beauty and allure of this woman’s visage is certainly typical of the style. One wonders who this woman might be? A goddess protecting over the libations once contained within the vessel? A deceased wife or mother whose relatives commissioned this work as a funeral offering? While we will never know the answer to this intriguing mystery, we do know that similar works were typically interred as burial offerings to provide for the deceased throughout eternity. Although the person in whose honor this masterpiece was created has long since departed, the beauty and majesty of this work continues to enchant us, a stunning reminder of the glories of the classical world. - (PF.5610)   « Less

Our knowledge about the Etruscan civilization is extremely limited. Our understanding of their language is still incomplete and most of the information that is known comes to  More »

Our knowledge about the Etruscan civilization is extremely limited. Our understanding of their language is still incomplete and most of the information that is known comes to us through the Romans, their one time subjects who grew to become their masters. The Etruscans lived under a series of autonomous city-states spread out across northern and central Italy. By the 3rd Century B.C., they would be absorbed into the burgeoning Roman Empire. Made from a reddish clay with a cream slip, this exceptionally beautiful head from an antefix has small blue eyes, thin black eyebrows, and thin red lips. Black curls cover her forehead. She wears painted blue and black button earrings, and two necklaces, one a string of beads and the other with pendant beads. Antefixes were placed at the ends of cover tiles that ran along the sides of a building's roof. These polychrome terracotta plaques provided necessary protection from the weather for the wooden framework of the building. This custom was prevalent all over Etruria (the lands of the Etruscan), Latium, and Campania from the 7th century B.C. until the Roman period. In Archaic and Classical times, the Estrucan city of Caere (modern Cerveteri) seems to have been an important center for the production of such works and this protome may very well come from there. - (X.0040)   « Less

Before the modern advents of trains and automobiles, trade between civilizations concentrated around the Mediterranean moved foremost by sea. While many bulk commodities such  More »

Before the modern advents of trains and automobiles, trade between civilizations concentrated around the Mediterranean moved foremost by sea. While many bulk commodities such as timber and stone could be loaded directly aboard a ship with little preparation, other commodities such as spices, wine, and grain needed to be packed in individual containers for transport both at sea and on land and to prolong their lifespan. Pottery was first created in order to fulfill these practical needs. Over time, the art form evolved from large, unadorned commercial transport vessels to refined, specialized works in elegant shapes used to hold precious substances such as perfume or oils.An entire retinue of terracotta vessels dedicated to the rites of the dinner table began to appear. These pieces were based on the luxurious bronze and silver vessels that could only be afforded by the wealthy elite and were decorated with fanciful natural motifs and painted scenes of everyday life and celebrated myths. These wares were of such beauty that they themselves became prized commodities and were traded throughout the Mediterranean world; perhaps even for the very substances they were created to contain. These works are individually classified by their shapes and their form was inherently linked to their function, be it preparation, dispensation, or consumption.   « Less

Our knowledge about the Etruscan civilization is extremely limited. Our understanding of their language is still incomplete and most of the information that is known comes to  More »

Our knowledge about the Etruscan civilization is extremely limited. Our understanding of their language is still incomplete and most of the information that is known comes to us through the Romans, their one time subjects who grew to become their masters. The Etruscans lived under a series of autonomous city-states spread out across northern and central Italy. By the 3rd Century B.C., they would be absorbed into the burgeoning Roman Empire. In Etruria from the earliest times, cinerary urns were engraved with images of a human face, perhaps intended to be the portrait of the deceased whose ashes were contained within. Later, sculpted masks served as the covers of the urns. Eventually, as the style evolved, the urns themselves were sculpted in the shaped of human faces. Some of the most splendid examples of Etruscan funerary art were excavated from the necropolis of Chiusi, one of the large population centers of Etruria. Whether this portrait head of a woman served as a cinerary urn or decorated one is unknown. However, it is clearly concerned with the funerary rites and no doubt yearned to capture the essence of this woman’s physical being for all eternity. And in this way, the artist was successful. Here we are, more than two thousand years later, confronted by a person who does not seem so distant from us. We recognize ourselves in her face, in her wavy hair and gentle smile. - (X.0048)   « Less

Lekythoi had both a functional and a ritual context for the ancient Greeks. Within daily life, they were used as flasks to hold precious ointments such as fragrant perfumes  More »

Lekythoi had both a functional and a ritual context for the ancient Greeks. Within daily life, they were used as flasks to hold precious ointments such as fragrant perfumes and sumptuous oils. They also used in funerary rites, specifically the white-ground varieties. These lekythoi, often decorated with scenes of mourning, would have been left on the grave as offerings or used to pour libations over the deceased. This lekythos, however, clearly was meant for the living and not for the dead.This particular lekythos is attributed to the Class of Athens 581. This Class of vases includes a large number of lekythoi are distinguished by a body that tapers steadily to the foot, the use of palmettes, buds, or rays (as is the case here) on the shoulders, and backgrounds with leafy branches. Lekythoi of this Class have been found in a tumulus for the Plataeans who died at the Battle of Marathon in 490 B.C., making this Class one of the few dateable black-figure vase styles. - (X.0072)   « Less

Although the interior of this silver phiale is smooth and unadorned, the exterior appears to take the form of a flower. A double rosette pattern marks the center of the bowl,  More »

Although the interior of this silver phiale is smooth and unadorned, the exterior appears to take the form of a flower. A double rosette pattern marks the center of the bowl, while thirty-three larger petals radiate outwards along the body. Above the ridge that begins at the tips of the petals, the vessel’s lip flares slightly outwards. The decoration of this piece is indicative of earlier works hailing from the Near East. Specifically, this phiale recalls similar examples from the Persian Empire that Alexander the Great would go on to conquer, revealing the ties that existed between these two great civilizations in spite of their warring ways. Shallow bowls like this phiale were used for making libations to the gods. Precious liquid substances, such as oil or wine, would have poured forth from the lip of this silver vessel onto an altar or shrine, invoking the favor of the gods. Surely the gods must have favored this phiale, for it has survived the ravages of time in a remarkable condition. Today, it serves as a memorial to the mastery of ancient Greek metalworkers. - (X.0085)   « Less

Core-formed glass vessels such as this one were produced primarily in the Eastern Mediterranean beginning in the 6th Century B.C., centuries before the invention of glass  More »

Core-formed glass vessels such as this one were produced primarily in the Eastern Mediterranean beginning in the 6th Century B.C., centuries before the invention of glass blowing. However, the discovery of the core-formed technique dates back to Ancient Egypt, over a thousand years prior to the creation of this piece. The vessels were formed around a disposable core made of clay or sand mixed together with an organic binder which was then covered with molten glass. Colored threads of soft glass were wound around the vessels, and a pointed instrument was dragged across the threads to create the charming zig-zag and stripe patterns that characterize such works. The shapes of the vessels generally imitated the forms of bronze and terracotta works from the same period. Core-formed vessels were exported widely across the Mediterranean world and today constitute some of the most impressive examples of ancient glass.This gorgeous blue core-formed glass amphoriskos is a masterpiece of ancient glass. Thin white threads have been wound across the body and the neck of the work, creating a charming decorative effect. Two handles along the neck and shoulders of the vessel would have allowed the piece to have been hung and would have aided in the handling of the piece. Vessels such as this were considered precious objects, not only because the high cost of the manufacturing process and their delicate nature; but also because they were used as containers for expensive perfumed oils and cosmetic powders. Glass containers had a natural advantage over their metal and terracotta counterparts: that the contents could be viewed from the outside. Over two millennia ago, this glass amphoriskos would have held fragrant unguents inside. Today, its precious contents have long since disappeared, leaving behind a vessel that is prized for its beauty, not for what was held inside. - (X.0185)   « Less

This magnificent bronze sculpture depicts the legendary hero Hercules, known to the Etruscans as Hercle. In northern Italy he was worshipped as a defender of the civilized  More »

This magnificent bronze sculpture depicts the legendary hero Hercules, known to the Etruscans as Hercle. In northern Italy he was worshipped as a defender of the civilized world against the beasts or monsters that threatened it. He is depicted as a nude youth, standing with his weight on the right leg. He wields a club in his raised right hand in a fighting posture. The Nemean lion skin is draped over his extended left arm and refers to the first of his twelve labours. The skin is rendered in some detail with the head, paws and tail all clearly defined. Etruscan bronze statuettes were cast solid by the lost-wax method. After casting the details, such as the short curly hair, were added by punching and engraving. Hercle was a popular figure in Etruscan bronze statuary and this statuette was probably intended as a votive offering in a temple sanctuary. There were several cult sites in Etruria, particularly in the Sabellian region, and the bronze statuettes discovered here exhibit a wide range of styles. This detailed study of the male form is incredibly naturalistic and refined. The surface is highly polished drawing attention to the muscles and bone structure. Part of the club is missing but the condition is otherwise excellent. (AM)   « Less

The bifurcated handles in the from of stylized horned animal heads, with orange-brown painted decoration, the shoulder with three metopes on each side containing a central  More »

The bifurcated handles in the from of stylized horned animal heads, with orange-brown painted decoration, the shoulder with three metopes on each side containing a central hatched meander flanked by two birds with stars in the field, encircling bands around lower body and a frieze of connecting concentric rings around the vertical rim - (X.0287)   « Less