[ΚΕΝΟ]



Rhyton with conglomerate motif

Π3560
Clay
Incomplete, mended and restored.
Height: 25 cm. Rim diameter: 7.2 cm. Hole diameter: 0.5 cm.
Palaikastro
Block Γ (Room 30)
Late Bronze Age. Neopalatial period, Late Minoan ΙB period.:
1500-1450 BC:
Gallery:
V
Case:
48
Exhibition thematic unit:
Late Bronze Age - Neopalatial period (1700-1450 BC). The New Palaces. The zenith of Minoan civilisation
Settlements of East Crete
Description
Ovoid rhyta, like this one from Palaikastro, were particularly popular among the inhabitants of Minoan Crete during the period of the New Palaces. They were used to decant liquids, by dipping the rhyton into the liquid and stopping the hole in the tip to transfer the contents to another container via the pouring hole in the tip. However, besides serving everyday domestic needs, rhyta could also be used as ceremonial libation vessels, as attested mainly by the iconography. This particular rhyton is decorated with a conglomerate pattern, consisting of repeated circular ornaments and a dotted surface resembling conglomerate rock. Another suggestion is that this painted ornament may imitate the surface of inlaid stone vessels. Stone ovoid rhyta were produced and used in special ceremonies in the major centres of Crete. The corresponding clay vases appear to have been a cheaper alternative, displaying a clear attempt to imitate features of stone and metal prototypes. This imitation is evident in formal details of this rhyton such as the concentric grooves on the rim and the relief neck-ring.
Bibliography:
Bosanquet, R.C. and R.M. Dawkins. The Unpublished Objects from the Palaikastro Excavations: 1902-1906. The British School at Athens. Supplementary Papers 1. London, 1923, 36, fig. 24. Koehl, R.B. Aegean Bronze Age Rhyta. INSTAP Prehistory Monographs 19. Philadelphia, Penn., 2006, 92, no. 123, fig. 7, pl. 13.
Author:
I. N.


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