Magna Graecia, Southern Italy, Apulia, ca. 360 to 325 BCE. A beautiful wheel-thrown lekythos of a squat form with a miniscule footed base, a globular body with a curved shoulder, a broad neck base which tapers to a slender neck, a funnel mouth, and an applied loop handle. The shoulder displays a register of incised vines with ivy leaves and small bunches of berries colored with applied orange pigment. The majority of the body, handle, and spout are colored in lustrous jet-black glaze, with only the underside of the foot left undecorated. A fabulous example from ancient Magna Graecia! Size: 4" W x 5.125" H (10.2 cm x 13 cm).

Gnathia ware is named for the site where it was first discovered - the Apulian site of Egnathia (also Gnatia, Egnatia, Ignazia). The black glaze ware is traditionally decorated with floral and other decorative motifs in red, white, or yellow hues. Scholars believe that its production most likely was centered around Taras, with primary workshops in Egnathia and Canosa. The quantity and quality of Greek colonial Apulian potters increased significantly following the Peloponnesian War when Attic exports dramatically decreased. Apulian artistry demonstrates influences of Ionian (Athenian, Attic) conventions, as well as Doric (western colonial Greek) styles, with a palpable native Italian aesthetic.

Provenance: private Orange County, California, USA collection, acquired at Royal Athena Gallery, New York, New York, USA

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#135404

Surface wear and minor abrasions commensurate with age, fading of white pigmentation to an orange color, small nicks to shoulder and base, with some light cracking around area where foot meets body, and some fading to glaze pigmentation. Light earthen deposits throughout.