Terracotta rim fragment of a kylix (drinking cup)
Unknown Artist
mid-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
2011.604.1.8425
Art Historical Context
This terracotta rim fragment from alix, a shallow drinking cup favored in ancient Greece, dates to the mid-th century BCE during the Classical period. Crafted in Attica—the heartland of Athens—this piece reflects the height of Athenian cultural flourishing, when democracy, philosophy, and the arts thrived amid the aftermath of the Persian Wars. Though only a fragment survives, it evokes the complete vessel's elegant form, designed for easy handling during social gatherings. Kylikes played a starring role in symposia, lively drinking parties where elite men reclined, sipped wine, and debated i...