Greek black-glaze kantharos, Athens, c.320-310 BC
Terracotta
Height: 11.4cm, diameter: 10.8cm, width across the handles: 16.7cm
10521
The moulded, gadrooned, bell-shaped body set on a low convex stem with a torus foot, two handles with horizontal spurs where they meet the top of the wide flaring neck,...
The moulded, gadrooned, bell-shaped body set on a low convex stem with a torus foot, two handles with horizontal spurs where they meet the top of the wide flaring neck, The whole in black glaze apart from a narrow reserved band round the foot showing traces of a thin red wash. The resting surface hollowed into a narrow channel with traces of red wash, the hemispherical interior of the footfired to a drown colour.
Intact, except for a hairline crack to the foot, some scattered losses and wear to the lip and resting surface.
The kantharos (pl. kantharoi) is a cup used specifically for drinking wine and is commonly depicted on figured vases in Bacchic scenes where the god of wine, often in a state of inebriation, is holding such a cup. The kantharos is characterised by its deep bowl and two vertical handles. One subdivision of the shape which features in this catalogue is the sessile kantharos. The stability of this kantharos variant made it a popular form. The development of these vessels is so limited that it is assumed they all originate from one workshop, near to the Agora in Athens.
Intact, except for a hairline crack to the foot, some scattered losses and wear to the lip and resting surface.
The kantharos (pl. kantharoi) is a cup used specifically for drinking wine and is commonly depicted on figured vases in Bacchic scenes where the god of wine, often in a state of inebriation, is holding such a cup. The kantharos is characterised by its deep bowl and two vertical handles. One subdivision of the shape which features in this catalogue is the sessile kantharos. The stability of this kantharos variant made it a popular form. The development of these vessels is so limited that it is assumed they all originate from one workshop, near to the Agora in Athens.
Provenance
Private collection, Europe; acquired mid-20th centuryLiterature
For a close example from an Attic workshop compare Brian A. Sparkes and Lucy Talcott, The Athenian Agora, Vol.XII, Black and Plain Pottery of the 6th, 5th and 4th centuries BC, Part 2 (Princeton, 1970), pl.29, no.704