Terracotta oil lamp

An item at Metropolitan Museum of Art

Loeschcke Type 1A. Mold-made. Deep, concave discus, two pairs of greaves and two swords, one straight, the other curved, both with straps above the hilt, and pointing in opposite directions, all arranged in a circle around a central, small filling hole, surrounded by three raised concentric circles; a narrow band of lines and grooves around edge. Volutes flanking broad, angular nozzle with large wick hole. Raised base ring, and uneven base. Intact.

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