Terracotta fragment of a kylix (drinking cup)
Unknown Artist
first quarter of the 5th century BCE
Medium
Terracotta
Classification
Vases
Culture & Period
Greek, Attic · Archaic
Department
Greek and Roman Art
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Gift of Dietrich von Bothmer, Distinguished Research Curator, Greek and Roman Art, 2011
Accession Number
2011.604.1.3445
Art Historical Context
This terracotta fragment from a kylix, or drinking cup, hails from Attic Greece in the first quarter of the5th century BCE, the late Archaic period Produced in Athens, the epicenter of ancient Greek pottery, such vases were everyday luxuries used in symposia—lively social gatherings where men reclined, drank wine, and discussed philosophy or politics. Though only a shard survives, it offers a glimpse into the refined craftsmanship of Attic workshops, where potters shaped wheel-thrown clay into elegant forms before firing them in kilns to achieve a warm, reddish hue. Kylikes were prized for th...