Art Institute of Chicago

Lebes (Stemmed Bowl with Lid)

Etruscan; possibly Vulci

Date

725-700 BCE

Medium

terracotta

Culture

Etruria

Department

Arts of Greece, Rome, and Byzantium

Institution

Art Institute of Chicago

Situated at the crossroads of Mediterranean trade routes, the Etruscans were avid importers of Greek vases with figural decoration. Many of these vessels survive today because they were buried with their Etruscan owners, and were discovered in tombs only during the last several centuries. This example was made by a local artist who quickly adopted the decorative motifs and painted styles of imported wares and adapted them to local tastes in order to capture some of the market. When the Greeks established settlements along the Italian coast, they brought with them pottery decorated in the Geometric style. On this ceremonial vessel there are banded decorations of zigzags, diamonds, and cross-hatching. The long-necked birds and stylized horses present recall bronze votive figures from Geometric-period Greece.

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