Ancient Greece, Athens, ca. 5th century BCE. A petite wheel-thrown pottery amphoriskos with a bulbous body, angular shoulder, a narrow neck, a flared rim, and a pair of applied loop handles, all atop a miniscule conical foot. Areas of the handles, shoulder, body, rim, and foot have been coated with a jet-black glaze, with sections around the neck and shoulder displaying a pale-orange slip. A trio of faint russet-hued horizontal stripes accentuate the unglazed shoulder ridge. Faint areas of silvery iridescence cover most of the black-glazed areas, giving the vessel an elegant presentation. Size: 2.5" W x 3.875" H (6.4 cm x 9.8 cm).
Ceramic production and painting took place in the northwest corner of Athens, in Kerameikos, where artisans created beautiful pottery as well as architectural decoration, roof tiles, and figurines. These were generally made on manually turned potter's wheels and were either the product of one or two workers - there was no mass production. Athenian kilns were fueled by wood, and the temperature controlled the ultimate color of the pottery. This is a strong example of the black-glaze style in which decorative coloration and motifs were applied with a slip that turned black during firing, while the background was left the natural color of the clay.
Provenance: private East Coast, USA collection; ex-Cahn International AG, Basel, Switzerland; ex-private S. C. collection, Basel, Switzerland
All items legal to buy/sell under U.S. Statute covering cultural patrimony Code 2600, CHAPTER 14, and are guaranteed to be as described or your money back.
A Certificate of Authenticity will accompany all winning bids.
We ship worldwide and handle all shipping in-house for your convenience.
#135426
Condition
Small areas of repair and light restoration to rim, neck, handles, and body with some overpainting along break lines. Surface wear and abrasions commensurate with age as expected, small nicks to body, foot, neck, and shoulder, with some fading to coloration.