Terracotta fragment of a skyphos (deep drinking cup)
Unknown Artist
last quarter of the 5th century BCE
Medium
Terracotta
Classification
Vases
Culture & Period
Greek, Attic · 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
2011.604.2.1450
Art Historical Context
This terracotta fragment from a skyphos, a deep two-handled drinking cup, hails from Attic Greece in the last quarter of the 5 century BCE, during the of the Classical period. Produced in Athens, the epicenter of ancient Greek pottery, such vases were everyday essentials for symposia—lively social gatherings where men shared wine, philosophy, and poetry. Though only a fragment survives, it offers a glimpse into the masterful craftsmanship of anonymous Attic workshops, where potters shaped vessels on wheels before firing them in kilns to achieve their signature reddish hue. Attic skyphoi were ...