On view
Ancient Mediterranean Art
Kylix (drinking cup) depicting palmettes (exterior) and a bird (tondo),
ca. 475–450 BCE
Greek, Attic
Classical Period, ca. 480–323 BCE
y1988-7
Animal-shaped vessels and vessels with painted representations of animals were produced and used across the ancient Mediterranean. Their widespread creation attests to a shared impulse to incorporate animals and nature into the world of humans. These elaborate and intricate vessels were used for ceremonial banquets and religious rituals, or in funerary activities. At times, it was believed that the use of these vessels could almost animate the creatures represented, making them present and involved in the unfolding events. The incorporation of vessels rep- resenting animals at these moments both connected the human and animal worlds and asserted the differences between these disparate realms.
Information
Title
Kylix (drinking cup) depicting palmettes (exterior) and a bird (tondo)
Dates
ca. 475–450 BCE
Medium
Black-figure ceramic with white-ground
Dimensions
h. 7.5 cm, diam. 20.0 cm (2 15/16 x 7 7/8 in.)
diam. of rim 14.0 cm, diam. with handles 20.0 cm, diam. of tondo 7.5 cm, diam. of foot 6.5 cm
Credit Line
Museum purchase, gift of Peter W. Josten and of Jonathan P. Rosen through the Joseph Rosen Foundation
Object Number
y1988-7
Place Made
Europe, Greece, Athens
Culture
Period
Subject
Purchased from Robert Hecht, Jr. and Atlantis Antiquities, NYC, in 1988.
