This small cup is a beautiful example of a quintessential Etruscan vessel: a drinking cup of a Greek type made in the typically Etruscan bucchero sottile. As a drinking cup, it is very much associated with the symposium or feasting banquet that became very prominent in Etruria (Central Italy, roughly modern Tuscany and Lazio) during…
Happy National Dog Day! In celebration, let’s take a look at object 286 – a solid bronze figurine of a dog begging (sitting up on hind legs with paws drawn to the chest). It’s possible this figurine depicts one of the most popular dogs in antiquity – the Melitan, also known as the Melitaean,…
Lead sling bullets like this one were widely used in the Greek and Roman world. This sling bullet is a typical biconical (almond) shape and was probably made in a two part mold. The mold was incised with a spear and a winged thunderbolt (a common symbol of power), resulting in the raised designs you…
To someone like me who studies the Greco-Roman world, at first glance this is a very familiar scene and artefact. The two terracotta dancing figures display a quite common Hellenistic (4th/3rd century BC) image, and we find many examples of this kind in Greece (Athens and Tanagra) or Southern Italy (Sicily or Taranto). It’s a…
This rotary mill is made from basalt, a volcanic stone found at Petra. Each mill was made of one stationary stone and one funnel-shaped stone that fit over it. The funnel-shaped stone was turned by animals or people using wooden levers that fit into the slots on the ‘ears’ of the stone. Mills like this…
This vessel features a squat, cylindrical body with a closed neck and mouth, suggesting it was used to contain and pour a valuable liquid, such as olive oil or perfume. Its distinctive black and red color and style of decoration likely indicate it is Greek, though where it comes from is a mystery. This form…
With oinos meaning “wine” and cheo “I pour” in ancient Greek, the oinochoe was at least nominally intended to do exactly that – but the vessel could obviously be used for pouring other kinds of liquids as well. The single handle and the trefoil or beaked spout was used to pour wine and/or other drinks…
Although not ancient, Object 248 features certain qualities that reflect methods of manufacturing Tanagra figurines used in ancient times. Crafted by artisans known as coroplasts, Tanagra types, including this particular one, involved fashioning terracotta into two-part molds, one for the front and one for the back of the statuette’s body. Vent holes, like the one…
RRC 448/3, ROME, 48 BCE, 3.99gOn the front, or obverse, of the coin you will notice a small “T” which has been pressed into the face of the woman. This symbol was not a part of the design, but an ancient mark made by a banker to demonstrate that the coin had been tested for…
The handle-less unguentarium is a form of pottery that was commonly found in burial sites. Typically, it is a very thin, cylindrical container with either a bulge in the middle or at the bottom. Used as packaging of market products and in funerals, the unguentarium usually held oils, powders, and other substances and were either…