CULTURE / REGION OF ORIGIN: Athens
DATE: EARLY 5TH CENTURY BCE
DIMENSIONS: 8.75cm. (3.5 in.) tall

DESCRIPTION: A miniature Athenian black glazed lekythos of typical form, with a strap handle and disc foot. The mouth, handle, body and upper surface of the foot are all covered in a glossy black slip, while the neck, shoulder and edge of the foot are reserved. Seventeen neatly painted black rays decorate the shoulder. There is a single neat repair to the neck where the handle joins it, and a few tiny chips to the rim. Otherwise the vessel is intact.

PROVENANCE: Formerly the property of an English owner, acquired in the 1970s.

PUBLISHED: Bonhams auction catalogue, ANTIQUITIES, 1 May, 2008, London, Page 202, illustrated in color on Page 203.

COMPARISONS: Athens: The City Beneath The City; Antiquities from the Metropolitan Railway Excavations, Greek Ministry of Culture, Athens, 2000, #353 for a similar example, dated 480-470 BC.