Alabastron with Athletes and Trainer

Place of OriginGreece, probably Athens

Dateabout 500 BCE

DimensionsH: 4 3/8 in. (11.1 cm); W: 1 1/2 in. (3.8 cm); Rim Diam: 1 1/8 in. (2.7 cm)

MediumWheel-thrown earthenware, black-figure on white ground

ClassificationCeramics

Credit LineGift of the Popplestone Family

Object number

2006.86

Not on View

DescriptionThis small oil flask has a tall, narrow body and a gently rounded base, leading into a short cylindrical neck and an out-turned rim. Painted in the black-figure technique on a white ground, it features three human figures: two nude male athletes, one holding a javelin and the other a discus, and a trainer wrapped in a himation. The figures are rendered with incised detail and added pigment.

Label TextThis small oil flask, called an alabastron, was used by ancient Greek athletes to carry scented oil for use after training or competition. Painted around 500 BCE in Athens, the vessel shows two nude athletes—one with a javelin, the other with a discus—being supervised by a clothed trainer. Their activity reflects the importance of athletics in Greek society, where physical fitness was linked to virtue and civic duty. The imagery also signals the object’s practical role in the gymnasium.Published ReferencesAncient World Arts Collection A899, Litchfield, CT, 1999, no. A384.