Terracotta rim fragment of a kylix (drinking cup)?
Unknown Artist
6th/5th centuries BCE
Medium
Terracotta
Classification
Vases
Culture & Period
Greek, Attic · Archaic/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
2011.604.5.498
Art Historical Context
This terracotta rim fragment from a kylix, or shallow drinking cup, hails from Attic Greece during the Archaic to Classical periods (6th–5th centuries BCE). in Athens, the heart of ancient Greek pottery innovation, such vases were everyday luxury items used in symposia—lively social gatherings where men reclined, drank wine, and debated philosophy or poetry. Though only a rim survives, it evokes the refined craftsmanship of Attic workshops, where potters and painters collaborated to create vessels that doubled as storytelling canvases. Terracotta, fired clay coated with a glossy slip, allowed...