History of Ancient Pottery 24

History of Ancient Pottery 24

The ῥυτόν, or drinking-horn (from ῥέω, “flow”), is a familiar shape in

the R.F. and later styles, but as a vase-form does not occur before the

middle of the fifth century.[696] Its peculiarities were: firstly, that

it could not be set down without drinking the contents; secondly, that

the narrow end was almost always modelled in the form of the head of

some animal, or of a woman or Satyr. Some examples are known in the

form of two heads back to back, usually a Satyr and a Maenad, but these

having a flat circular base are an exception to the first rule noted

above, and partake more of the nature of a cup than of a drinking-horn.

Although no archaic examples have been preserved, the rhyton, or

κέρας,[697] as it is also called, frequently appears on B.F. vases,

being generally held by Satyrs or revellers, or by Dionysos.[698]

Athenaeus says it was a form reserved for the use of heroes, and that

κέρας was the older name for it.[699] Among the South Italian vases, it

is found almost exclusively in Apulia, and these belong to the

decadence of the Apulian style, the paintings being limited to a figure

of Eros, or a woman, and little more. These rhyta have one handle, and

the cup-part is generally cylindrical in form, tapering slightly

towards the lower part, where the head is attached (Fig. 54.). In some

instances the form is narrower and more elongated, with fluted body.

The animals’ heads are usually left unvarnished, and coloured in detail

like the terracotta figures; the mouth often forms a spout from which

the liquid could be allowed to run out.[700] The heads, which occur in

great variety, include the panther, fox, wolf, horse, goat, mule, deer,

and dog[701]; also Gryphons and Pegasi (see below). Athenaeus mentions

a vase called the τραγέλαφος,[702] which was doubtless a rhyton ending

in two heads, a goat and a deer conjoined, like some known specimens;

he also quotes a description of another called ελέφας, explained as a

rhyton with two spouts (δίκρουνος).[703] Further, under the heading

ῥέοντα, which is doubtless a synonym for ῥυτόν, he mentions one in the

form of a Gryphon, another in the form of a Pegasos.[704] The name is

mentioned by Demosthenes, together with κύμβια and φιάλαι.[705] It is

worthy of mention that among the Mycenaean objects discovered at Enkomi

in Cyprus, in 1896, and now in the British Museum, there are two or

three rhyta in porcelain, corresponding in form to those of the R.F.

period, and of very advanced style[706]; they are in fact quite unique.

 

A few comparatively unimportant names of vessels for holding food and

liquids at the table may next be discussed.

 

[Illustration: FIG. 55. PINAX.]

 

The names given for dishes are δισκός, παροψίς, and τρύβλιον, the

latter of which frequently occurs in Aristophanes, but παροψίς seems to

be of late introduction, and more used by the Romans (see Chapter

XXI.).[707] For a plate the usual name was πίναξ (also πινακίον,

πινακίσκος), a form which is interesting as often occurring among

painted vases (Fig. 55). It is found at all periods, from the fabrics

of Rhodes and Naukratis down to the Apulian and Campanian

“fish-plates,” which have a sinking in the centre, and are painted with

fish, shell-fish, etc. They were no doubt used for eating fish, the

sinking being for the sauce.[708] A famous early instance of the pinax

is the “Euphorbos-plate” in the British Museum (see p. 335). The name

is also given to the square plaques or tablets, such as those found at

Corinth, on the Athenian Acropolis, and elsewhere, which were generally

of a votive character. They are often depicted on the vases themselves,

indicating the locality of a shrine.[709]

 

Vessels for holding vinegar or sauces were known by the names of

ὀξύβαφον, ὀξίς, or ἐμβάφιον.[710] The shapes are not exactly known, but

they were apparently small cups or dishes; the incorrect identification

of the first-named with the κρατήρ we have already discussed (p. 171).

The words ἐρεύς and κυψελίς are given by Pollux[711] as vases for

holding sweets, and the κυμινοδόκον or κυμινοθήκη was, as the name

implies, a box or receptacle for spices.[712] The last-named has been

identified with the κέρνος, described by Athenaeus as “a round vessel,

having attached several little kotylae (κοτυλίσκους).”[713] Two

existing forms correspond in some degree to this description: one found

in Cyprus and at Corinth, and consisting of a hollow ring, to which

small cups or jars are attached at intervals; the other found chiefly

in Melos, and consisting of a central stand, round which are grouped a

varying number of alabastron-like vases, evidently designed for holding

small quantities of unguents or perfumes, or perhaps flowers, eggs, or

other objects. They are all of very early date, and decorated in

primitive fashion.[714] A better form of the word seems to be κέρχνος.

Many have been found at Eleusis,[715] and it is supposed that they were

used in the Mysteries for carrying the first-fruits.[716]

 

[Illustration: FIG. 56. LEKYTHOS.]

 

Several kinds of vases were used for holding oil, the characteristic of

all these shapes being the narrow neck and small mouth, which were

better adapted for pouring the liquid drop by drop. The ordinary Greek

word for an oil-flask is λύκυθος, frequently found in Aristophanes and

elsewhere. We have already referred (pp. 132, 143) to the passages in

the _Ecclesiazusae_ where the practice of placing lekythi on tombs, and

generally of using them for funeral purposes, finds allusion. From

these passages it has been possible to identify the class of

white-ground Athenian vases on which funeral subjects are painted, with

absolute certainty as =Lekythi=. But the shape is not confined to this

one class. In the early B.F. period (especially in Corinthian wares) it

assumes a less elegant form, with cup-shaped mouth, short thick neck,

and quasi-cylindrical body tapering slightly upwards (cf. the

alabastron below). The later form, which prevails from the middle of

the B.F. period down to the end of the fourth century at Athens, with

very little variation of form, is one of the most beautiful types of

Greek vases (Fig. 56). It has a long neck, to which the handle is

attached, flat or almost concave shoulder, and cylindrical body,

semi-oval at the base. The B.F. examples are seldom found in Italy, and

almost all come from Athens and other Hellenic sites, or from Sicily, a

country in which the form seems to have been exceptionally popular. The

same may be said of the ordinary R.F. examples, which have no

sepulchral reference, and are found in large numbers at Gela

(Terranuova) in Sicily, but seldom elsewhere. The white lekythi have

been found in Eretria, and at Gela, and Locri in Southern Italy,

besides Athens. The lekythos seldom attains to any great size, except

in the marble examples used as tombstones. They were probably used at

the bath and in the gymnasium, and may also have served other purposes,

_e.g._ for pigments. In illustration of this reference may be made to

the well-known passage in Aristophanes’ _Frogs_ (1200 ff.), where the

jeer of Aeschylos at Euripides’ stereotyped beginnings of his plays,

ληκύθιον ἀπώλεσεν, seems to imply “he is hard up for something new to

say,” _i.e._ “he has lost his paint-pot; his lines need embellishment.”

 

[Illustration:

 

FIG. 57. LEKYTHOS (LATER FORM).

]

 

Towards the end of the fifth century the lekythos takes a new departure

(Fig. 57), and appears with a squat, almost spherical body, without

foot (except for the base-ring). This form is sometimes known as

_aryballos_ (see below), but is perhaps more accurately described as a

“wide-bodied” (Germ. _bauchige_) lekythos. It is very popular at Athens

in the late fine or polychrome vases,[717] and was adopted exclusively

in Southern Italy, where it is the only form of lekythos found. This

type of vase is often found in the period of the Decadence with a

subject moulded in relief attached to the front, sometimes of a comic

nature.

 

[Illustration: FIG. 58. ALABASTRON.]

 

The _alabastron_ (ἀλάβαστρον or ἀλάβαστος, both forms being found in

Classical Greek) is a shape closely allied to the lekythos. It

preserves the same form throughout the period of Greek vase-painting

(Fig. 58.), but is not often found after the middle of the sixth

century. In the early Corinthian wares it is very common. The name is

derived from the material of which it was originally made, and many

examples of alabaster vases of this shape have been found in

excavations. It was chiefly used for holding oil, unguents, and

cosmetics, and is often represented in scenes of ladies’ toilet as in

use for these purposes. Its characteristics are a flat round top with

small orifice, short neck, and more or less cylindrical body with

rounded-off base, intended for placing in a stand (ἀλαβαστοθήκη).[718]

It is generally without handles, but when they occur they are in the

form of two small ears, through which a cord was passed for carrying or

suspending it. The “alabaster box” of the Gospels was a vessel of this

form (cf. the original Greek), and it was broken by knocking off the

top, in order that the contents might flow out quickly. The name βῆσσα

is also given as a synonym of the ἀλάβαστρον.[719]

 

[Illustration: FIG. 59. ARYBALLOS.]

 

Another vase of the same type is that known as the ἀρύβαλλος. The

derivation of the word is unknown, but the first half connects it with

the “ladle” class of vases (ἀρυτήρ, etc.), of which we have already

spoken. It can, however, hardly be a vase of that type, and the

connection seems to be its use in the bath,[720] _i.e._ as an

oil-flask. It is generally described as resembling a purse;

Athenaeus[721] says it is broader below than above, like a purse tied

at the neck with a string. The name, however, is usually applied to a

form of vase akin to the alabastron, but with small globular body,

handle, and very short neck (Fig. 59.). This type is almost confined to

the Corinthian and other early fabrics, and frequently occurs in glazed

or enamelled ware (see p. 127). Its connection with the bath is

undoubted, and it was generally carried on a string, together with a

strigil or flesh-scraper. As this form died out in the sixth century,

the name has been used, as noted above, for a later variety of the

lekythos, in which the body approaches a globular form.

 

Transitional between the alabastron and the aryballos is a type of

which some examples occur among early Corinthian wares, with egg-shaped

body, flat round top, and small ear-like handle, the base being rounded

off. To this the name βομβύλιος has been tentatively given, on the

authority of Antisthenes, who defines the word as meaning a kind of

lekythos with narrow neck.[722] In the same passage of Athenaeus[723]

it is contrasted with the quickly-emptied φιάλη or bowl; those who

drink from it must do so drop by drop (κατὰ μικρὸν στάζοντες). The name

may denote a cocoon, the shape of which this vase resembles, or may be

imitative, from the gurgling sound made by a liquid poured therefrom.

The ἐξάλειπτρον was also probably a kind of oil-flask.[724]

 

[Illustration: FIG. 60. PYXIS.]

 

A few forms of vases were exclusively devoted to feminine use. These

include the πυξίς, a cylindrical box with cover, in which jewellery or

other objects such as hair-pins, cosmetics, etc., might be kept for use

in the toilet (Fig. 60.). The painted examples of this form, which

nearly all belong to the later R.F. period, are usually decorated with

appropriate subjects, women at their toilet, preparations for weddings,

etc. The σμηματοθήκη, or soap-box, served similar purposes.[725] It

seems to be represented by a form of vase of which the British Museum

possesses a specimen (without figure decoration), with cover and high

stem, but no handle except the knob on the cover. It is intermediate in

form between the pyxis and the so-called λεπαστή (p. 165), and

sometimes appears in toilet and other scenes.[726] A rare form, found

almost exclusively in the R.F. period,[727] consisting of a globular

vase with vertical looped handles on a high stem, has been variously

named, but the latest theory is that it represents a λέβης

γαμικός.[728] It contained lustral water, and is usually decorated with

bridal scenes. One is depicted in a toilet scene on a pyxis in the

British Museum.[729]

 

[Illustration: FIG. 61. EPINETRON OR ONOS.]

 

Lastly, a peculiar semi-cylindrical vessel, closed at one end and open

down the side (Fig. 61.), was for a long time a puzzle to

archaeologists, but its use was finally determined by its appearance in

a vase-painting.[730] It is there held by a seated woman, fitted over

her knee and thigh, and was used while spinning to pass the thread

over. The name of these objects is given by Pollux (vii. 32) as

ἐπίνητρον or ὄνος (“the donkey”). Several of them are painted with

spinning scenes, and the vase-painting alluded to above is curiously

enough on a vase of this form.

 

There is a type of vase, of which two or three varieties occur, which,

from its general likeness to a wine-skin, is usually styled =Askos=. It

does not, however, appear that there is any direct authority for this,

at least in literary records; where the word does occur, it always

denotes a leather skin, such as is sometimes depicted on the vases,

carried by a Seilenos or Satyr. It is, however, a convenient

__EXPRESSION__, and there is no other recorded term which can on any

grounds be associated with this type.

 

[Illustration: FIG. 62. ASKOS.]

 

The earliest examples, which date from the middle of the R.F. period,

have a flat round body with convex top, and a projecting spout (Fig.

62); the handle is sometimes arched over the back to meet the spout, or

else takes a separate ring-like form.[731] They are usually decorated

with two small figures, one on each side. In the vases of Southern

Italy a new form appears (Fig. 63), chiefly found in Apulia, in which

the resemblance to a wine-skin is much more apparent, the tied-up pairs

of legs being represented by the spout or a projection. The handle is

usually arched over the back, and the pouch-shaped body sometimes

assumes an almost birdlike form.

 

[Illustration: FIG. 63. APULIAN ASKOS.]

 

A variety which is also common in Southern Italy is made of plain black

ware, and is not painted but has a subject in relief in a medallion on

the top[732]; the handle is ring-shaped[733] and the form generally

resembles the variety first described, except that the body is flat on

the top, and convex below, with a base-ring (Fig. 64). It seems

probable that these vases were used for holding oil for feeding lamps,

and consequently they are generally known by the Latin name of

_guttus_, or “lamp-feeder” (see pp. 211, 503). Whether the painted aski

were used for the same purpose is doubtful; those, however, with the

large body seem to have been intended for other purposes, especially as

they often have a strainer inserted in them. Some indeed appear to have

been used as rattles, and still contain small balls or pebbles, placed

within them for that purpose. On the whole, however, it seems more

convenient to reckon the ἀσκοί with the oil-vases.[734]

 

[Illustration: FIG. 64. SO-CALLED “GUTTUS.”]

 

Among vases which do not exactly fall under the heading of any

particular shape may be noted certain types of moulded vases, and those

with reliefs modelled on them or attached. Many of these almost fall

under the category of terracotta figures, but still must be reckoned as

vases, even when painted in the methods of terracottas rather than

pottery. Such are the large aski described on page 119, and the

contemporary ornamental vases modelled in the form of female heads, of

Maenads, or of Athena (as B.M. G 1). Other types we have described

elsewhere,[735] such as the rhyta ending in animals’ heads, the

kanthari and rhyta of the R.F. period in the form of human or Dionysiac

heads, and the analogous vases of the archaic period. Again, there are

such forms as the flasks with flat circular bodies, and the large

pyxides which are often found in Southern Italy.[736] They usually bear

a subject in relief, covered with a white slip and painted in pink and

blue, like the Canosa vases; a specimen from Pompeii, with rich remains

of colouring, has lately been acquired by the British Museum. The

curious type of vase sometimes found in Sicily, with a tall conical

cover, the ornamentation being partly in encaustic, partly in gilded

relief, has been already mentioned.[737] There is also a late variety

of the so-called kernos (p. 195), consisting of four cups united on an

elaborate fluted stand, of which the British Museum possesses two good

examples.[738]

 

It should be borne in mind that all these exceptional shapes are

probably imitations of metal-work, perhaps made for the benefit of

those who could not afford the more expensive material, just as

imitation jewellery was sometimes made in gilt terracotta. Throughout

the Hellenistic period (to which the classes we are discussing chiefly

belong), the universal tendency is to substitute metal vases for

pottery, and moulded or relief-wares for painted decoration, and the

potter, finding the painted vases were no longer appreciated, was

forced to confine himself to imitating metal, and thus keep abreast

with the new fashion. The whole subject of the plastic decoration of

vases has been more fully dealt with elsewhere (Chapter XI.).