Mycenaean Stirrup Vase

An ancient Mycenaean pottery stirrup vessel with a raised spout and decorative ochre bands painted around the body.

Ca. 1400 - 1200 BC.

Height: 4 1/2 in. (11 cm).

Stirrup jars were first made in Crete around 1500 BC. The shape was adapted by the Mycenaeans and was one of their most prevalent export wares. The vessels were made to hold precious liquids like aromatic olive oil or perfume.

cf.: A. Furumark, "Mycenaean Pottery I, Analysis and Classification," (Stockholm, 1972) p. 22, figs. 3.23, 4.30, 5.31, 6.36; also L. Marangou, "Ancient Greek Art: the N. P. Goulandris Collection," pp.38-41.

Formerly in the collection of Professor W. Kendrick Pritchett, Department of Classics, University of California, Berkeley, acquired between 1936 and 1960.

Inv#: 5988

Guaranteed Authentic

$3,000