Fish Plate
Artist: Workshop of Asteas/Python (Greek)
Date: about 340-330 BCE
Dimensions:
H: 2 9/16 in. (6.5 cm); Diam: 12 3/4 in. (31.6 cm); Diam (foot): 5 7/8 in. (15.0 cm)
Medium: Wheel-thrown, slip-decorated earthenware with incised details
Place of Origin: Lucanian (Paestan)
Classification: Ceramics
Credit Line: Purchased with funds from the Libbey Endowment, Gift of Edward Drummond Libbey
Object number: 1977.30
Label Text:“Fish plates” like this, both large and small, were used to serve seafood. The depression in the center collected the highly flavored sauces that were popular. The surface is painted with an octopus, four fish, two crayfish (their white surfaces much abraded), and two scallops. The eyes, fins, and scales of the octopus and fish are rendered with a sketchy wash of black and added white over the natural clay-red bodies. The rim is painted with a band of ivy leaves and berries.
On view
In Collection(s)