Greece, Athens, ca. 540 to 530 BCE. An elegant Attic lip cup or kylix, a vessel that resembles a Gordion cup - only its lip is more defined from the rest of the body, standing on a hollow conical pedestal foot with a broad base and twin, upturned loop handles rising on opposite sides. Adorning the tondo is an elegant siren rendered in profile and painted via the red-figure technique with incised details and added/fugitive red pigment embellishing her face, wings and chest. Perhaps this mythical winged maiden is in the midst of singing her dangerously enchanting melody intended to lure nearby sailors to shipwreck on the rocky coast of her island. A decorative border of alternating red and black lozenge-shaped forms, perhaps abstract depictions of wings, surrounds her presence. The exterior walls are finely decorated with black bands, and stylized palmettes flank the handles. A beautiful example associated with the celebratory ceremonies of the Dionysiac cult. Size: 10.375" W x 4.81" H (26.4 cm x 12.2 cm)
Lip cups were somewhat difficult to produce, and the pronounced ridge underneath the rim of lip cups would have prevented spilling.
Provenance: private Orange County, California, USA collection acquired before 2000
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#161030
Condition
Professionally repaired from about 12 to 15 pieces with restoration, infill, and repainting over the break lines. Handles and pedestal base repaired and reattached. Nicks to peripheries of base.