Ladle

Unknown

ca. 3rd–7th century CE · Bronze · Ancient Near Eastern Art

This is a small bronze ladle. It has a straight handle with several thin collars and a loop at the top. The handle widens at the bottom where it meets the hemispherical bowl. The ladle is now badly corroded, and the handle is broken into several pieces. The handle and bowl were probably cast separately. This ladle was excavated at Qasr-i Abu Nasr, near modern Shiraz, Iran, a small Sasanian town with a fortress. The ladle was found in the fortress in what was probably a storeroom. Several other implements for eating and drinking were recovered from the fortress, indicating that in addition to being a military installation it was also a residence, where soldiers, and perhaps also their families, lived. Presumably the ladle was used for serving rather than eating, much like its modern counterparts.

Artist

Unknown

Date

ca. 3rd–7th century CE

Medium

Bronze

Culture

Sasanian

Department

Ancient Near Eastern Art

Credit line

Rogers Fund, 1934