Description: Nereids bringing replacement armor to Achilles during the Trojan War. Side A: Nereid riding hippocamp holding a Corinthian type helmet. Side B: Nereid riding dolphin holding a sword in a scabbard and two spears. Raised palmette and tendril pattern on shoulder; outlined relief rays at base; punched circles among tendrils and in rows on shoulder and above rays.
Label Text: Silver vessels of any type from the Classical period (5th-4th centuries BCE) are uncommon and those with engraved figural scenes are exceptionally rare. While the exact number extant is not known, the group is not likely to include more than 25 examples. This is the only amphoriskos yet recognized amont the group of Classical engraved vessels. The style of the engraving and the bold relief work on the Amherst amphoriskos raise interesting questions about the date and place of this perfume vessel's manufacture. Certain aspects of the engraving style seem almost archaizing (especially the treatment of the drapery); whether this is the result of an early date (mid-5th century BCE) or, rather, of provincial craftsmanship (perhaps Thracian or Greek colonial) remains to be determined In addition, the subject of arms-bearing Nereids was particularly popular on Classical and Hellenistic gold and silver objects found in tombs along the northern Black Sea coast; the Amherst amphoriskos's relation to this phenomenon merits investigation. Further study of this exquisite, unique object promises to shed important new light on the history of luxury arts in the wider Greek world.
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