Artwork Page for Monkey-Shaped Aryballos (Oil Vessel)

Details / Information for Monkey-Shaped Aryballos (Oil Vessel)

Monkey-Shaped Aryballos (Oil Vessel)

c. 580 BCE

East Greek, probably Milesian

Medium
ceramic
Measurements
Diameter of mouth: 2 cm (13/16 in.); Overall: 9 cm (3 9/16 in.); Diameter of base: 3.7 cm (1 7/16 in.)
Credit Line
Seventy-fifth anniversary gift of Dr. Leo Mildenberg in honor of Arielle P. Kozloff 1991.50
Public Domain
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Location
102B Greek
Print
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Did You Know?

An aryballos is a small jar for scented oils and perfumes.

Description

Perfume flasks in the form of a monkey are numerous, but few are as well made and preserved as this one. The flask was worn suspended from the wrist by a cord. Its owner would take it to the communal baths and anoint himself with its contents afterward. Such flasks have been found throughout the Mediterranean and Egypt, but this vessel was likely made at a Greek settlement on the west coast of Asia Minor.
This orange-brown ceramic vessel is shaped like a monkey and features a protruding snout with a curved black mouth and large, silhouetted eyes. Black stippling textures the face and head, while thick vertical lines pattern the cylindrical body. A disc-shaped rim with red and black paint sits atop the head, surrounding a narrow opening. Dark, patchy stains mark the lower body, with black and red paint accenting the ears.

Monkey-Shaped Aryballos (Oil Vessel)

c. 580 BCE

East Greek, probably Milesian

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