Terracotta spouted cup

Unknown

ca. 2600–2200 BCE · Terracotta · Greek and Roman Art

Vasiliki ware is named for the site where it was first discovered in Eastern Crete. Potters created extremely hot kilns to achieve a distinctive mottled effect. They coated vessels with an inconsistent mixture of diluted clay and red pigment and fired them unevenly, so the hottest areas turned black. The deliberate patterns were made by placing carbon on the surface. Such vases were distributed throughout Crete and have become the hallmark of pottery of the Early Minoan II period.

Artist

Unknown

Date

ca. 2600–2200 BCE

Medium

Terracotta

Culture

Minoan

Department

Greek and Roman Art

Credit line

Bequest of Richard B. Seager, 1926