Cycladic, Early Cycladic II, ca. 2600 – 2200 B.C.

Marble

D: 14.3 cm; H: 5.3 cm

Serial: 25861

This piece is remarkable for its excellent state of preservation and craftsmanship. It was carved from a block of white marble and shaped as an almost perfect hemispherical vessel. The surface has been smoothed; it has now the yellowish patina. The external profile is convex; from inside a groove emphasizes the horizontal, rounded edge where it shows traces of tool marks from the carving of the marble. The bottom of the plate presents a circular depression which forms the base and balances the piece. Owing to its precise, fine shape, as well as its depth, this bowl is a good example of this type of open vessels (plain bowls with average diameter of about 15-20 cm).

Along with kandiles, jars, and beakers, plain bowls are one of the most distinctive forms of Cycladic vessels. As the design is simpler and the shape is shallower than the former, the execution of such bows required less labor and time. The number of found plain bowls shows that these vessels were definitely more affordable and spread. Although the exact purpose of them is unclear, their shape made them versatile: they could be used not only for storage, but mixing. Most of the examples whose provenance is known were found in necropoleis often along with marble figurines; this might suggest that they could have served as cult vessels during funerary banquets, and then they were left inside the tomb as dedications. One can not, however, exclude the possibility of their use in everyday life. Some could be used as cups and containers for food or other liquids. It was, however, observed that the rim thickened on the interior would have rendered the vessel impractical for the drinking.

This particular piece bears traces of an intense red pigment on its interior, suggesting that it was used as a mortar for grinding the raw pigment (few examples were found along with their pestles). The red color was believed to have regenerative powers, the pigment (red ochre or hematite, ferric oxide) was mixed with water or probably with oil or animal fat in the cosmetic preparation, and it was also employed by the Cycladic sculptors as paint for their marble figures. Bowls with traces of red color are most common, but green, blue, and black are also found on the walls of the Cycladic marble vessels.

CONDITION

The piece is intact and preserves traces of red pigment on the interior. Deposits of lime incrustation. Few scratches on both exterior and interior surface.

PROVENANCE

Ex-US private collection, 1964.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

GETZ-PREZIOSI P., Early Cycladic Art in North American Private Collections, Richmond, Virginia, 1987, pp. 300-304, nos. 122-126.
GETZ-GENTLE P., Stone Vessels of the Cyclades in the Early Bronze Age, University Park, Pennsylvania, 1996, pp. 97-105, 178, pls. 50-55.
THIMME J., ed., Art and Culture of the Cyclades, Karlsruhe, 1976, pp. 318-319, 507-509, nos. 296-305.