Roman Oil Lamp with Amazon

£ 500.00

An Ancient Roman light-tan terracotta oil lamp with reddish brown slip. The lamp features a long canal nozzle with volutes, a decorated discus and one filling hole. The discus is decorated with two concentric lines surrounding the depiction of an Amazon, shown demi bust, facing left while holding a double headed axe, known to the Romans as a bipennis. The warrior figure is portrayed wearing a cap and a chiton.

Date: Circa 1st-3rd Century AD
Condition: Fine. Signs of aging and earthly encrustations on the surface. Slight blackening to the spout from use.

SOLD

Product Code: RES-17
Category: Tags: ,

Amazons were the mythological female warriors who, under the command of their queen, lived apart from men. In The Argonautica, Apollonius Rodius gives an account of the amazons, mentioning that they were the daughters of the gods Ares and Harmonia. They were brutal, aggressive female warriors, whose main concern in life was war. The representation might also be referred to the widespread practice of having female combatants during the Roman Empire. Female gladiators were indeed very rare, but at the same time well-documented.

To discover more about the ancient origins of oil lamps, visit our relevant post: Oil Lamps in Antiquity.

Dimensions H 11.5 cm
Region

Southern Europe

Pottery

Terracotta

Roman Mythology

Amazon

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