Terracotta neck-amphora (jar)

An item at Metropolitan Museum of Art

While the function of a particular vase shape remained quite constant, the manner of decoration allowed many variations—such as the presence or absence of glaze, which made the surface predominantly light or dark, and the placement of the ornamental and decorative elements in relation to the shape. With the limited means available to Attic potters and vase-painters, the control of such details determined the effect of their works, as this seemingly simple vase demonstrates.

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