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Mycenaean, Greece

Stirrup Jar, ca. 1100 BCE

Now On View

Description

Maker

  • Unknown

Culture

Mycenaean

Title

Stirrup Jar

Year

ca. 1100 BCE

Medium

Terracotta

Materials/Techniques

Materials

  • clay

Techniques

  • terracotta

Dimensions

Height: 20.3 cm (8 inches)

Place

Greece

Type

  • Ceramics

Credit

Gift of Andrea Toon and Joel H. Cohen in honor of Franklin W. Robinson

Object Number

1991.181

Exhibition History

Exhibition History

Ancient Greek and Roman Galleries

This ceramic vessel, known as a false-necked amphora or stirrup jar, takes its name from the stirrup shape formed by the two handles bridging the false spout. After the 14th century BCE, these jars were the most common form of storage and transport vessel in the Mycenaean world. Their unique configuration made them particularly well suited for liquids such as wine and oil. The false spout and handles were ideal for holding, while the narrow neck of the true spout, located on the shoulder, controlled the liquid’s flow. Although the stirrup jar was characteristically a Minoan form, it was adopted by the Mycenaeans after their conquest of Minoan Crete. The triangular forms and wavy lines on this vessel also echo the decorative elements of its Minoan predecessors.

Use

The images on this website can enable discovery and collaboration and support new scholarship, and we encourage their use. This object is in the public domain (CC0 1.0). This object is Stirrup Jar with the accession number of 1991.181. To request high-resolution files or new photography, please send an email to imagerequest@risd.edu and include your name and the object's accession number.

Feedback

We view our online collection as a living documents, and our records are frequently revised and enhanced. If you have additional information or have spotted an error, please send feedback to curatorial@risd.edu.

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