• Ivory pyxis with relief scene of bull hunt and capture



Ivory pyxis with relief scene of bull hunt and capture
Ivory pyxis with relief scene of bull hunt and capture
Ivory pyxis with relief scene of bull hunt and capture
Ivory pyxis with relief scene of bull hunt and capture

Ivory pyxis with relief scene of bull hunt and capture

Ο-Ε345
Bone (Ivory)
Partially restored
Height: 9.2 cm. Maximum diameter: 8.5 cm.
Katsambas
Tomb Η
Late Bronze Age. Final Palatial period, Late Minoan ΙI period.:
1500-1450 BC:
Gallery:
VI
Case:
61
Exhibition thematic unit:
Late Bronze Age - Neopalatial period (1700-1450 BC). Private and public life. Bread and circuses
Athletes and Acrobats. Bull-leaping
Description
Pyxis made of a slightly curved, oval piece of elephant tusk. A flange on the rim indicates the attachment point of the lid, which is not preserved. The bottom of the base was affixed with small rivets. The cylindrical surface of the pyxis bears a scene in low relief depicting the Minoan sport of bull-hunting, with men capturing a wild bull. The outdoor scene unfolds in a rocky landscape framed by two palm trees. A young man is attacking a raging bull with a spear. The man, wearing a belt and loincloth, is running to the left while looking backwards. The bulky, angry bull is charging with tensed back and lowered head. A second man has caught the bull by the horns with crossed arms and is being tossed up in the air, upside-down in an acrobatic pose. He is wearing a loincloth and a belt with a strap. A bracelet is visible on the wrist of his left hand, which is clenched in a fist. To the left of the first man is a second, frontally depicted male figure which is only partially preserved. This man is probably holding a net or a piece of cloth rather than a spear. A waterbird flies above the figures. This vivid scene is pictorial evidence of a Minoan sport which is not attested in later times.
Bibliography:
Alexiou, S. Υστερομινωικοί τάφοι Λιμένος Κνωσού (Κατσαμπάς). Βιβλιοθήκη της εν Αθήναις Αρχαιολογικής Εταιρείας, no. 56, Athens, 1967, p. 56, pls 30 α-β, 31 α-β, 32, 33α-β. Alexiou, S. Ανασκαφή Κατσαμπά Κρήτης, Πρακτικά της εν Αθήναις Αρχαιολογικής Εταιρείας (1963): pls 156α-β, 157.
Author:
E. T.


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