Proto-Corinthian Aryballos (Oil Flask) or Alabastron (Oil Flask) Rim Fragment

Archaic
720 BCE - 630 BCE

3/16 in. x 5/8 in. x 3/8 in. (0.55 cm x 1.55 cm x 1 cm)

This object has the following keywords:

• alabastra - Small ancient Greek or Roman vessels for holding oils, ointments, or perfumes; usually elongated in form, almost cylindrical, and rounded at the bottom. Some footed examples also exist. They either have no handles or one small handle at the side. Alabastra are small enough to be held in one hand or it could be carried by a string looped around its narrow neck or passed through smal lugs on the shoulder. The shape originated in Egypt, where it was made in glass, faience, or alabaster (it takes its name from this stone).
• aryballoi - Relatively small ancient Greek vessels with a globular body, a short neck, a flat disk-shaped mouth with a small orifice, and a handle (or sometimes two) extending from the shoulder to the rim; used for holding oils, perfumes, and ointments. They are usually made of terracotta. Uses of the aryballoi included in funeral rituals and by athletes who wore them on their wrists, suspended by thongs or strings.
• Proto-Corinthian - Refers to the Orientalizing phase of Greek art in Corinth, from about 720 to 620 BCE, which is roughly contemporary with the Proto-Attic phase in Athens. The Proto-Corinthian pottery style developed in Corinth in the eighth century BCE and lasted until around 640 BCE. It is characterized by vessels that are usually cups, jugs, or perfume pots, with decoration that is at first geometric and later includes animal and human figures, with occasional Eastern curvilinear ornamentation. The later examples are distinctive for the rounded contours and animation of the figures, painted in outline and silhouette, with added designs in incision and white color.
• rim sherds - Fragments of a ceramic or glass vessel from just below the rim.

This object is a member of the following portfolios: