Terracotta fragment of a kylix (drinking cup)
Unknown Artist
490–470 BCE
Medium
Terracotta
Classification
Vases
Culture & Period
Greek, Attic · Late Archaic/Early Classical
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
2011.604.1.6769
Art Historical Context
This terracotta fragment from a kylix, or shallow drinking cup, hails from Attic Greece during the Late Archaic to Early Classical period (490–470 BCE). Produced in Athens, the epicenter of ancient Greek pottery, kylikes like this were essential for symposia—lively social gatherings where elite men reclined, drank wine, and debated philosophy or recited poetry. Though only a fragment survives, it exemplifies the exquisite craftsmanship of Attic vase painters, who transitioned from the bold black-figure technique to the more nuanced red-figure style, leaving clay figures unpainted against a glo...