Corinthian Globular Aryballos
£ 950.00
A beautiful Corinthian pottery aryballos decorated with a swan and a cockerel with outstretched wings. This small vessel features a globular body with a short neck, that leads to a thick, flattened rim. The pouring hole is small in comparison the wide mouth. A strap handle runs from rim to body. Base slightly curved.
The body is decorated mostly in black-figure technique, with added details in a dark red pigment. The two birds occupy most of the space, although floral filler decorations in various sizes have also been added. A petal band decorates the shoulders, base and mouth. A dotted band circles the wide rim.
Date: Circa late 7th Century-6th Century BC
Provenance: Gottfried and Helga Hertel collection, Cologne, acquired prior to 1995.
Condition: Excellent. A few knicks to the surface.
SOLD
The aryballos was another type of oil flask, although the term is a modern label for the shape. In antiquity it would have been known by other names also, such as lekythos. The shape was popular in Corinth, from which it originated, but use spread throughout Ancient Greece. It was used extensively by athletes, carried at the waist to transport oil for the gymnasium.
To discover more about Ancient Greek pottery, please visit our relevant blog post: Collecting Ancient Greek Vases.