Bowl with Dancing Satyrs and Maenads (Terra Sigillata)
Bowl with Dancing Satyrs and Maenads (Terra Sigillata)
Place of OriginItaly
Date30 BCE-50 CE
DimensionsH: 3 1/4 in.; W: 5 in.; D: 5 in.; Diam (rim): 5 1/8 in. (13.0 cm)
MediumMolded earthenware (terra sigillata)
ClassificationCeramics
Credit LinePurchased with funds given by the Latin students of Donnell Junior High School, Findlay; and with funds from the Libbey Endowment, Gift of Edward Drummond Libbey
Object number
1992.1
On View
Toledo Museum of Art (2445 Monroe Street), Gallery, 02, Classic
DescriptionA hemispherical bowl of mold-made earthenware with a high-gloss red slip. The interior surface is smooth and undecorated. The exterior profile features a slightly flaring rim above a horizontal band of egg-and-dart molding, framed by raised fillets. The central register displays a continuous relief frieze of a Dionysiac thiasos (procession), depicting Pan, dancing satyrs, male revelers supported by female figures (possibly maenads), and satyrs riding griffins. The lower body is decorated with a calyx design of stylized floral motifs, specifically a double quatrefoil arrangement of Nymphaea caerulea (blue lotus) leaves interspersed with acanthus-like florals. The bottom center features a six-petaled rosette.
Label TextThis bright red bowl was the "fine china" of the Roman world. Made by pressing clay into molds to create detailed relief scenes, it allowed middle-class Romans to mimic the luxurious silver vessels used by the wealthy. The decoration celebrates Bacchus, the god of wine, making it perfect for a dinner party. Look closely to spot Pan (the goat-legged god) and satyrs riding mythical griffins. This bowl is a special acquisition: it was purchased in part with funds raised by Latin students at Donnell Junior High School in Findlay, Ohio, who wanted to help the Museum acquire a piece of history from the people whose language they were studying.Published ReferencesToledo Museum of Art, Annual Report, July 1, 1991 - June 30, 1992, p. 21, repr.Comparative ReferencesSee also Walters, H.B. Catalogue of Roman Pottery in the Department of Antiquities, British Museum, London, 1908.
cf. Charlestown, R.J., Roman Pottery, London, n.d., pp. 10-11.
cf. Brown, A.C., Catalogue of Italian Terra-sigillata in the Ashmolean Museum, Oxford, 1968, pp. xviii-xix.
1st century CE
500-450 BCE
about 15 BCE - 25 CE (Roman, Augustan)
50 BCE-50 CE
about 540 BCE
3rd-2nd century BCE
about 575 BCE
about 580-570 BCE
Late 4th century BCE
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