LATE 5TH CENTURY B.C., PROBABLY ATTIC

Details

A FINE GREEK MARBLE EXALEIPTRON AND LID
LATE 5TH CENTURY B.C., PROBABLY ATTIC
The shallow bowl with a broad inverted rim and raised lip, on tall tapered stem with stepped foot and raised collar supporting the bowl, the lid with tall elegant finial, repaired
9¾ in. (24.8 cm.) high incl. lid

Special notice

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Lot Essay

This exquisite marble vessel epitomises the restrained classical beauty of 5th Century B.C. art in Athens when the city was at its zenith politically and creatively. There are few exaleiptra now surviving, with most other examples in museums: The National Museum, Athens (NM11362, 11365, 11368, 12292), Museum of Fine Arts, Boston (MFA 81.355), Allard Pierson Museum, Amsterdam (1612), and three in Berlin. Also cf. J. Harris (ed.), A Passion for Antiquities: Ancient Art from the Collection of Barbara and Lawrence Fleischman, The J. Paul Getty Museum, Malibu, 1994, pp. 106-107, no. 46 for the type: "The shape of this vase, exaleiptron, is derived from the Greek meaning 'to anoint'. Also called plemochoe or kothon, this vessel type was used to contain perfumed oil, either as part of a toilette or as a grave offering. The sharply inward-curving lip of the vessel held in the precious fluid and prevented it from spilling."

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