Terracotta fragment of a mastoid (drinking cup with narrow base) or a kyathos (cup-shaped ladle)
Unknown Artist
late 6th/early 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
2011.604.3.1177
Art Historical Context
This terracotta fragment, likely from a mastoid—a drinking cup with a distinctive narrow base—or a kyos, a cup-shaped ladle hails from Attic Greece during the late Archaic period (late th to early 5th century). Crafted in the bustling potters' workshops of ancient Athens, such vessels were everyday essentials for symposia, the lively social gatherings where men shared wine, philosophy, and poetry. Though only a fragment survives, it offers a tangible glimpse into the refined pottery traditions of this era, when Attic artisans mastered wheel-thrown terracotta forms prized across the Mediterrane...