Pelike is the term used to describe a type of amphora with two handles, where the broadest part of its body is below the mid-point of its height. The shape of the vessel was originally designed as a storage receptacle for liquids, particularly oil and wine, but it is likely that elaborately decorated examples such as this one served a funereal purpose.The obverse depicts a seated draped female, with her hair pulled high beneath a sakkos. Her left foot is raised slightly in front of the right and she holds a mirror in her raised right hand. In her left hand she holds a phiale in a movement of gesture towards a winged representation of Eros. The god wears a similar sakkos, clutching a fan in his right and a tambourine in his left. A fillet is depicted in the field above the female and a rosette hovers above the god of love. The figures are flanked on either side by a palmette design. Around the rim of the neck is a band of rosette and dotted ovolo motifs, whilst the base is encircled by the meander design.The reverse depicts two draped males facing one another. The figure on the left holds a staff in his right hand. The band around the neck differs from that on the obverse and is adorned with laurel leaves. - (AM.0020)

Antiquities
Ancient Unknown