Classical World, Italy, Etrusco-Corinthian, ca. 630 to 540 BCE. An elegant aryballos of an elegant form with an inverted piriform body, a tubular neck, an annular rim, and a single strap handle joining rim to shoulder, all atop a petite foot. The vase is painted via the black-figure technique with a decorative program that consists of slender, leaf-like tongues on the shoulder, rim, and lower body, elegant bands outlining the narrow spout and base - and most prominently, a central register of incised, nested scale motifs surrounded by pairs of striations above and below. This vessel would have been used for storing precious scented oils for a lady's toilette or perhaps medicine. The scale pattern is classic Etruscan, but Etrusco-Corinthian pottery was an adaptation of the Corinthian style, produced mainly at Vulci, Caere, and Tarquinia. It was inspired by the intensification of trade between Etruria, Greece, and the Near East. Size: 2.2" W x 4.4" H (5.6 cm x 11.2 cm); 5.5" H (14 cm) on included custom stand.

Cf. The Metropolitan Museum of Art, accession number 96.9.14

Cf. The British Museum, museum number 1867,0508.882

This piece has been tested using thermoluminescence (TL) analysis and has been found to be ancient and of the period stated. A full report will accompany purchase.

Provenance: private South Australia, Australia collection; ex-Artemis Gallery; ex-private New York, New York, USA collection; ex-private L.S. collection, Orange County, California, USA, acquired before 2005

All items legal to buy/sell under U.S. Statute covering cultural patrimony Code 2600, CHAPTER 14, and are guaranteed to be as described or your money back.

A Certificate of Authenticity will accompany all winning bids.

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Display stands not described as included/custom in the item description are for photography purposes only and will not be included with the item upon shipping.

#166390

Handle reattached to body, with small chips and light adhesive residue along break lines. Minor abrasions and surface wear commensurate with age, with possible touch-up painting to bands along lower register and upper/lower edges of central register. Great preservation to overall form, incised decorations, and pigment. TL drill holes beneath base and under top rim.