Terracotta fragment of a kylix (drinking cup)
Unknown Artist
mid-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
2011.604.1.8818
Art Historical Context
This delicate terracotta fragment from a kylix, a shallow drinking cup popular in ancient Greek symposia, hails from Attic Greece in the mid-5th BCE. Produced during the Archaic period, such vessels were everyday essentials turned artistic canvases, often featuring painted scenes of mythology, daily life, or revelry. Though only a piece survives, it evokes the refined craftsmanship of Athenian potters, whose workshops dominated the Mediterranean pottery trade. Attic terracotta vases like this one highlight the evolution of Greek ceramic techniques, from black-figure to emerging red-figure sty...