Greek Apulian Squat Terracotta Lekythos

Comprising the upper two thirds of the vessel; on the shoulder a facing woman's head with diadem and half-veiled face; rosettes to left and right, with suspended ribbons and dots; vine motif around the body with floral ornaments; to the reverse, palmettes and vines; band of laurel with rosettes around the neck and wavy band at the mouth; reassembled from various fragments with three large areas of restoration, only the beginnings of the handles preserved; mounted on a custom-made stand. 1.95 kg, 31 cm (2.6 kg total, 47.5 cm high including stand)



Ex Herbert A. Cahn, Basel, 1990s. This lot has been checked against the Interpol Database of stolen works of art and is accompanied by search certificate number no.12475-228738. This lot has been cleared against the Art Loss Register database, and is accompanied by an illustrated lot declaration signed by the Head of the Antiquities Department, Dr Raffaele D’Amato.

The face-veiling gesture is a known marriage rite; the diadem may suggest that she is intended to represent Persephone. Alternatively, the veiled woman might be a dancer as many terracotta figurines of dancing women are shown with face-coverings. However, the floral ornaments could indicate a funeral or sepulchral context.

With an arching strap handle and a wide spout; either side of the body painted with a crouching panther, one playing with a ball and the other depicted facing; repaired. 149 grams, 12 cm



Acquired from Gallery Gryphos, Munich, 1992. European private collection. Accompanied by an academic report by Dr Raffaele D’Amato. This lot has been checked against the Interpol Database of stolen works of art and is accompanied by a search certificate number no.12001-211879. This lot has been cleared against the Art Loss Register database, and is accompanied by an illustrated lot declaration signed by the Head of the Antiquities Department, Dr Raffaele D’Amato.

Painted askoi in different forms were produced and been in use in Athens since the middle and second quarter of the 5th century B.C., but they were also made in southern Italy. The askoi painted with a pair of animal figures were realised in Magna Graecia after the Attic continental production of similar models, with the representation of griffins, sphinxes and laconic hounds. The function of the askos as a vessel was clearly linked to wine, and therefore it is not anomalous to see it decorated with panther motifs, an animal connected with Dionysus, the god of wine and drinking.

In the form of a harpy, comprising a facing female mask with lobed headdress on a tapering neck, crescentic lateral wings and tails with feather detailing, central column with claw foot; beneath, a scrolled panel developing to a four-toed claw; hollow to reverse of mask and claw, fixing stud and mounting ledge to reverse. 55 grams, 96 mm



Acquired in Germany, before 2000. English private collection. with Bertolami Fine Arts Ltd, Auction 88, no.162. This lot is accompanied by an illustrated lot declaration signed by the Head of the Antiquities Department, Dr Raffaele D’Amato.