Egypt, perhaps Alexandria or Fayum, Romano-Egyptian Period, ca. 1st to 2nd century CE. Of both exceeding rarity and unquestionable beauty, a hand-built faience amphora of sturdy form and bichrome presentation from Roman-controlled Egypt.
The apple-shaped body rises and expands gently upwards from the discoid foot, its upper body and shoulder densely decorated with a wreath of applied leafs glazed with sky blue pigment atop the midnight blue-purple body.
Resting atop the shoulder and beneath the broad rim is an unusual pair of ring handles since many faience amphorae like this have either bar-shaped handles or no handles at all. Size: 7.4″ W x 7.1″ H (18.8 cm x 18 cm) Cf.
another example at The Metropolitan Museum of Art, accession number 21.2.3.
A similar example with bar-shaped handles hammered for GBP 13,750 ($17,536.75) at Christie’s, London “Antiquities” auction (sale 14231, December 6, 2017, lot 88)
- Created: 2nd Century CE
- Inventory Number: 3001 Von Schmidt Family Trust
- Collections: Von Schmidt Family Trust Antiquities Collection 3000