GREEK HELLENISTIC CENTURIPE WEDDING URN Late 3rd century BC A large ceramic vessel consisting of a pedestal base, bell-shaped vessel body with applied acanthus leaf decoration to the base and traces of painted decoration to the central zone; applied decoration of ovolo and leaf motif to the base of the rim, applied lion heads and band to the rim; dome-shaped lid with traces of pigment; funnel-shaped finial with pyxis shaped top with standing figure of Eros (Cupid) wearing loin cloth and wings outspread. 7 kg, 90cm (35 1/2"). Condition Fine condition, restored. Provenance Property of a European gentleman living in the UK; formerly in a private collection formed in the 1990s. Published Accompanied by an Art Loss Register certificate. Literature Cf. Mayo, M. The Art of South Italy: Vases from Magna Graecia, Ricmond, 1982, pp.282-285. For a similar example see the Metropolitan Museum of Art, accession number 30.11.4a–c; and the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, accession number 1970.478. Footnotes Centuripe ware, also known as East Sicilian polychrome ware, was a specialised class of pottery, decorated with painted scenes in tempera on a white background, often with applied mouldings reminiscent of architectural decoration. Because of the fragility of the wares and their decoration, they are believed to have a ritual function, possibly associated with marriage rites. Most of the wares are decorated with wedding scenes, usually of the gods such as Persephone and Hades, or Dionysus and Ariadne, and with Aphrodite as a central presiding figure. They have been found in domestic and funerary contexts as well as at temples where nearly all have been dedicated to either Aphrodite or to Demeter and Persephone. It is believed that they were given as wedding gifts and kept in homes, later being placed in the tombs of the deceased owners, whilst others were dedicated in temples as part of marriage rituals. The accompanying figures of Eros, or sometimes doves, would further suggest connotations of love. The painted scenes are reminiscent of those that are described by ancient authors, such as Pausanius, as decorating important public buildings, such as temples, where celebrated artists were commissioned to depict scenes relating to the patron deities of the city. Similar scenes have also been found decorating tombs, such as painting over the entrance to the tomb chamber of Phillip II, father of Alexander the Great, at Vergina in northern Greece. The deities shown on the vases relate to the emerging mystery cults which enjoyed great popularity in southern Italy and Sicily, presumably due to the blissful afterlife they promised to their initiates.
GREEK HELLENISTIC CENTURIPE WEDDING URN Late 3rd century BC A large ceramic vessel consisting of a pedestal base, bell-shaped vessel body with applied acanthus leaf decoration to the base and traces of painted decoration to the central zone; applied decoration of ovolo and leaf motif to the base of the rim, applied lion heads and band to the rim; dome-shaped lid with traces of pigment; funnel-shaped finial with pyxis shaped top with standing figure of Eros (Cupid) wearing loin cloth and wings outspread. 7 kg, 90cm (35 1/2"). Condition Fine condition, restored. Provenance Property of a European gentleman living in the UK; formerly in a private collection formed in the 1990s. Published Accompanied by an Art Loss Register certificate. Literature Cf. Mayo, M. The Art of South Italy: Vases from Magna Graecia, Ricmond, 1982, pp.282-285. For a similar example see the Metropolitan Museum of Art, accession number 30.11.4a–c; and the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, accession number 1970.478. Footnotes Centuripe ware, also known as East Sicilian polychrome ware, was a specialised class of pottery, decorated with painted scenes in tempera on a white background, often with applied mouldings reminiscent of architectural decoration. Because of the fragility of the wares and their decoration, they are believed to have a ritual function, possibly associated with marriage rites. Most of the wares are decorated with wedding scenes, usually of the gods such as Persephone and Hades, or Dionysus and Ariadne, and with Aphrodite as a central presiding figure. They have been found in domestic and funerary contexts as well as at temples where nearly all have been dedicated to either Aphrodite or to Demeter and Persephone. It is believed that they were given as wedding gifts and kept in homes, later being placed in the tombs of the deceased owners, whilst others were dedicated in temples as part of marriage rituals. The accompanying figures of Eros, or sometimes doves, would further suggest connotations of love. The painted scenes are reminiscent of those that are described by ancient authors, such as Pausanius, as decorating important public buildings, such as temples, where celebrated artists were commissioned to depict scenes relating to the patron deities of the city. Similar scenes have also been found decorating tombs, such as painting over the entrance to the tomb chamber of Phillip II, father of Alexander the Great, at Vergina in northern Greece. The deities shown on the vases relate to the emerging mystery cults which enjoyed great popularity in southern Italy and Sicily, presumably due to the blissful afterlife they promised to their initiates.
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.jpg "Source: Christie's")
.jpg "Source: Christie's")
