Greek black-figure mastoid cup, Athens, c.500-490 BC
Terracotta
Height: 9cm; diameter: 10.4cm
11818 IVP
£ 16,000.00
Drinking cup with narrow base, finely potted, the handles tilting upwards, a thin reserved line beneath the main scene which is painted in black figure and shows a bearded satyr...
Drinking cup with narrow base, finely potted, the handles tilting upwards, a thin reserved line beneath the main scene which is painted in black figure and shows a bearded satyr bending forwards between a pair of large eyes in black slip, added white and added red beneath a pair of elegant brows. Intact, two chips to rim restored.
The mastoid is a type of skyphos distinguished by its breast-like form, from which it takes its name. The painted eyes on either side reflect a popular feature of Attic vase painting between roughly 540 and 500 B.C. Their exact significance remains debated, though they are clearly connected to the heightened perception associated with drinking wine, as well as to its potential dangers, and are normally considered apotropaic.
The mastoid is a type of skyphos distinguished by its breast-like form, from which it takes its name. The painted eyes on either side reflect a popular feature of Attic vase painting between roughly 540 and 500 B.C. Their exact significance remains debated, though they are clearly connected to the heightened perception associated with drinking wine, as well as to its potential dangers, and are normally considered apotropaic.
Provenance
Victor Emile Gabriel Chevallier (1889-1969) and his wife Marguerite Jeanne Verel (1887-1962), France; recorded in their inventory as no.25
Mr. X, France; by descent from the above in 1969, thence by descent through two estates
Literature
Compare an example in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, USA, object number: 41.162.173Also CVA Germany 34, Hannover 1, pl.24/4,5,6, and CVA, Italy 59, Chiusi 1, pl. 35/4,5,6
