Amphora (Storage Jar)
455-445 BCE
Medium
terracotta, red-figure
Dimensions
33.3 × 17 × 16.8 cm (13 1/8 × 6 3/4 × 6 5/8 in.)
Classification
vessel
Department
Arts of Greece, Rome, and Byzantium
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Accession Number
84553
Rights
Public Domain
About this artwork
This vase has a distinctive shape characterized by an elongated ovoid body on a thick disk foot, an offset flaring neck, an inverted lip with grooves for a lid, and handles that rise from the shoulder and curve below the height of the mouth to join the neck. The type is called a Nolan amphora, after Nola, Italy, the site where the first examples of this shape were discovered and where this example was also found. It probably contained wine, olives, or oil. Nolan amphorae are small, usually less ...
About the Artist
Ancient Greek
The artist known simply as "Ancient Greek" represents the anonymous masters of Attic vase painting, a cornerstone of Classical Greek art from the Archaic and Classical periods (circa 700–300 BCE). Little is known of their personal life, as ancient Greek potters and painters rarely signed their works or left biographical traces; early life and training remain not well documented. These creators ope...