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
2011.604.2.1542
Art Historical Context
This delicate terracotta fragment from a skyphos—a deep, two-handled drinking cup—offers a glimpse into the vibrant world of Classical Athens in the last quarter of the 5th century BCE. Crafted by an unknown Attic potter and painter, it hails from the height of Greece's Golden Age, a time when Athens flourished culturally amid philosophical debates and grand festivals like the Panathenaia. Skyphoi like this were everyday essentials at symposia, intimate gatherings where men reclined, shared wine, and discussed poetry, politics, and philosophy. Attic terracotta vases, fired in kilns and often ...