Bowl with Central Medallion
Date: about 325-250 BCE
Dimensions:
2 1/4 × 7 1/2 × 7 1/2 in. (5.7 × 19.1 × 19.1 cm)
Medium: silver with gilded decoration
Place of Origin: From the region of Kerch, Crimea [Black Sea Greek colonies]
Classification: Metalwork
Credit Line: Gift of The Georgia Welles Apollo Society
Object number: 2022.21
Label Text:This type of round luxury vessel with a plain exterior and an interior featuring a human head or bust in the center was increasingly popular throughout the Greek world from the 4th century BCE onwards. The central medallion shows the bust of a young, winged woman in high relief. A wreath of berries encircles her head and the tip of a thyrsus (long staff ending in a pinecone and wreathed with ivy and ribbons) is visible at left. Both wreath and thyrsus are attributes of the wine god Dionysos. However, this figure is not a typical follower of Dionysos, who were called Maenads, since Maenads are never shown with wings. The bust recalls representations of the youthful Eros, god of passionate love, but the figure in the medallion seems clearly female. The figure combines elements and attributes of different deities, which is unusual.
On view