Amphora Shaped Pilgrim Vessel

Creator

Preview

Creation Date

5th–6th centuries

Geography

Eastern Mediterranean; possibly Palestine

Culture

Roman, Byzantine

Medium

Lead(?)

Dimensions

1 15/16 x 3/4 x 5/8 in.

Credit Line

Bequest of David P. Harris ('46), 2020

Accession Number

2020.115

Provenance

Purchased by David P. Harris from Julia Schottlander (Tetragon) in London on April 24, 1994. Said to have come from the collection of Lord Alistair McAlpine (1942–2014).

References

Brad Hostetler, with Ani Parnagian, "From Private to Public: The Collection of David P. Harris," in Ethiopian Objects in the Blick-Harris Study Collection: Art, Context, and the Persistence of Form, eds. Brad Hostetler, and Lynn Jones, Peregrinations: Journal of Medieval Art & Architecture 8, no. 1 (Spring 2022): 5–25. https://digital.kenyon.edu/perejournal/vol8/iss1/1/

Description

This small ampulla is in the shape of an amphora with two handles and a ribbed neck and body. Such ampullae are thought to be worn by pilgrims and used to hold oil and water from holy sites. An amphora-shaped ampulla of similar size is at the British Museum, 1964,0107.3.