Terracotta fragment of a neck-amphora (jar)
Unknown Artist
490–480 BCE
Medium
Terracotta
Classification
Vases
Culture & Period
Greek, Attic · Late 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
2011.604.3.457
Art Historical Context
This terracotta fragment from a neck-amphora, to 490–480, offers a glimpse into the vibrant world of Late Archaic Attic pottery from ancient Greece. Crafted in Athens during a pivotal transition from the Archaic to the Classical era, neck-amphorae like this were elegant storage jars used for olive oil, wine, or as grave offerings. Though only a fragment survives, it exemplifies the skilled wheel-throwing techniques of Attic potters, who fired terracotta clay to a warm reddish hue and often decorated it with intricate black- or red-figure painting. Attic vases held immense cultural importance,...