Greek Bronze Tiered Cup

Cup or bowl of spherical shape, unpainted, fitted with a wishbone handle. 96 grams, 14 cm



Ex P.A., Hertfordshire, UK, specialist collection of Greek art, 1980-1990s.

The presence of Achaeans in Cyprus, in late Cypriot II, also significantly influenced the life of the island from a ceramic production point of view. The social changes and new habits that developed among the elites of the main urban centres of the island included elaborate funerary displays, a means through which the emerging elite could express its identity and differentiate itself from other social groups. The ceramic forms were often cups intended for elaborate libation rituals, symposia, or ceremonies equivalent to Near Eastern marzeah, during which drinking services including kraters for mixing wine, cups and jugs were used. Alongside the more elaborate Achaean pottery, local Cypriot pottery (white-slip and base-ring) was still in use.

Comprising fragments from various types of vessels, most with painted decoration; including a large fragment of an Indus Valley vessel with a polychrome frieze with an ibex. 427 grams total, 37-95 mm



UK gallery, early 2000s.

The figure comprising a stylised horse with elongated neck, mounted by a bearded rider figure holding a shield; mounted on a custom-made display stand. 275 grams total, 14.5 cm high including stand



Acquired before 1990. From an old German collection.

Terracotta figurines of horse and rider were common grave offerings in Boeotia, northwest of Attica, particularly during the 6th century B.C. Representations of warriors on horseback were already widespread in the Geometric Period, and widely used in Cyprus during this period. The rider, although influenced by Cypriot designs, does not show typical Cypriot characteristics.