Terracotta oil lamp

An item at Metropolitan Museum of Art

Loeschcke Type 1A. Mold-made. Discus: two gladiators fighting, both wearing helmets and greaves; on the left, the gladiator is static, facing right, with his short, curved sword in his outstretched right hand; on the right, the gladiator is advancing forward to left, his back facing to front, holding his shield up in front of his face in his left hand and his right arm behind him; two separate ground lines below figures, and a small, rectangular shield below; a single filling hole between gladiator's legs at right; a band of lines and grooves around edge. Volutes flanking angular nozzle with large wick hole. Raised base ring, and flat base. One hole towards right edge of discus, another on left underside, and some large chips to edges and on base.

Greek and Roman Art

An exhibit at Metropolitan Museum of Art

The Museum's collection of Greek and Roman art comprises more than thirty thousand works ranging in date from the Neolithic period (ca. 4500 B.C.) to the time of the Roman emperor Constantine's conversion to Christianity in A.D. 312. It includes the art of many cultures and is among the most comprehensive in North America. The geographic regions represented are Greece and Italy, but not as delimited by modern political frontiers: Greek colonies were established around the Mediterranean basin and on the shores of the Black Sea, and Cyprus became increasingly Hellenized. For Roman art, the geographical limits coincide with the expansion of the Roman Empire. The department also exhibits the art of prehistoric Greece (Helladic, Cycladic, and Minoan) and pre-Roman art of Italic peoples, notably the Etruscans.

Metropolitan Museum of Art