Belly-Handled Amphora (Storage Vessel)

Place of OriginGreece, perhaps from the Argolis

Dateabout 1150 BCE

Dimensions14 3/4 × 15 3/4 × 12 3/8 in. (37.5 × 40 × 31.4 cm)

MediumWheel-thrown, slip-decorated earthenware

ClassificationCeramics

Credit LinePurchased with funds from the Libbey Endowment, Gift of Edward Drummond Libbey

Object number

1963.17

On View

Toledo Museum of Art (2445 Monroe Street), Gallery, 02, Classic

DescriptionThis vessel features a depressed ovoid body resting on a ring foot, rising to a concave, splaying neck with a rolled rim. Two horizontal, round-sectioned handles are attached at the belly's widest point. The fabric is light yellow, decorated with dark brown to bone-sienna slip. The primary decoration on the belly zone consists of tricurved arches linked by antithetic streamers; the spaces within are filled with chevron motifs and stylized floral elements. The shoulder zone is encircled by a fringe of joining semicircles. Thick bands encircle the lower body and the interior and exterior of the neck. The vessel exhibits a slight tilt from firing.

Label TextThis amphora dates to the tumultuous period following the collapse of the great Mycenaean palaces around 1200 BC. Despite the political upheaval, pottery production continued with remarkable resilience. The vessel is decorated in what scholars call the "Close Style" or a related derivative, characterized by dense, intricate patterns that leave little empty space—a horror vacui. The central motif features arches connected by streamers, a stylized abstraction of earlier floral or marine designs. Such jars were used for storing liquids like oil or wine. Its survival and specific decoration suggest it may have come from the Argolid region, a stronghold of Mycenaean culture that persisted even as the Bronze Age world faded.Published ReferencesAuktion XXVI, Basel, Münzen und Medaillen A.G., 5 Oktober 1963, p. 23, no. 45.

Riefstahl, Rudolph M., "Greek Vases," Toledo Museum of Art Museum News, vol. 11, no. 2, 1968, p. 29, repr.

Boulter, Cedric G., and Kurt T. Luckner, Corpus Vasorum Antiquorum, Toledo Museum of Art, fasc. 2, U.S.A. fasc. 20, pl. 64, nos. 3, 4.