Terracotta fragment of a lekythos (oil flask)
Unknown Artist
late 6th 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
2011.604.3.885
Art Historical Context
This delicate terracotta fragment from a lekythos, or slender oil flask, hails from Attic Greece in the late 6th century BCE during the vibrant Archaic period. Lekythoi like this were everyday luxury items, filled with perfumed oils for personal use or as grave offerings in funerary rituals, reflecting the ancient Greeks' deep connection to the afterlife. Crafted in the workshops of Athens, this piece showcases the era's terracotta pottery tradition—fired clay vessels hand-built on a wheel and often adorned with black-figure painting, where incised details revealed the red clay beneath glossy ...