Ancient Greece, Athens, ca. 500 BCE. A beautiful Attic lip cup - a type of Little Master Cup or kylix - created during the mid 6th century BCE 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. In this example the lip is undecorated; however, just beneath the lip and on the exterior wall is a lovely surprise, a register featuring a skillfully delineated nude figure riding a horse flanked by a pair of striding nude males, possibly athletes or satyrs, who are in turn flanked by a pair of cloaked figures - this Dionysian scene on both sides (albeit with a few areas of loss), with tendrilled palmettes to either side of the upraised loop handles. Finally, a concentric circle adorns the tondo, as is customary for Attic-ware. Size: 11.5" W x 5.625" H (29.2 cm x 14.3 cm)
Lip cups were somewhat difficult to produce, and the pronounced ridge underneath the rim of lip cups would have prevented spillage.
This piece presents strong Attic black-figure painting - a painting technique from the Archaic period. The artist first painted with slipware and then carefully scratched into it with a type of needle in order to incise the lines, thus creating delightful figures and patterns. In this case the Dionysian scene is quite apropos for this wine vessel.
This piece has been tested using thermoluminescence (TL) analysis and has been found to be ancient and of the period stated. A full report will accompany purchase.
This piece has been searched against the Art Loss Register database and has been cleared. The Art Loss Register maintains the world’s largest database of stolen art, collectibles, and antiques.
Provenance: private Orange County, California, USA collection acquired before 2000
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#162946
Condition
TL holes on base, under handle, near top rim, and at bottom near the base. Repaired from multiple pieces with restoration to about 15% of the bowl affecting one figure and one palmette, but the rest of the painting on the exterior registers is original for the most part, save areas over and in vicinity of the break lines. Handles and foot restored from new material.