Kylix of Douris (c.470 BCE)
This Attic red-figure kylix, attributed to Douris and dated to about 470 BCE, turns a drinking vessel into a carefully staged image of human encounter.
Household Items
Everyday objects used in homes across centuries, such as cooking utensils, furniture, and storage vessels. This category showcases how people lived, worked, and thrived in domestic settings throughout history.
Female Headed Jug (c. 650 BCE)
This female headed jug, shaped as a richly adorned, is one of those vessels that immediately blurs the boundary between useful object and sculpture. Made around 350 BCE in Attica and later found at Tarquinia in Etruria.
Snuff Bottle with European Figures (1736–95 CE)
Crafted in the 18th century, the snuff bottle exemplifies the artistry and cross-cultural exchanges of the era, offering a glimpse into how portable luxury items like this were not only functional but also symbols of imperial curiosity and refinement.
Miniature Metate (700–1000 CE)
This miniature metate is a small, intricately carved stone grinding slab from Central Mexico, likely originating in Xochicalco (Morelos region) during the Epiclassic period.
Roman Bronze Olpe (1–100 CE)
Thos olpes pear-shaped body, high curved handle, and intricate relief decorations featuring Dionysian themes make it a striking example of functional art that blended utility with symbolic elegance.
Black-Figure Amphora (c.540 BCE)
Produced in the workshops of Attica (the region around Athens), this black-figure amphora features nearly identical scenes on both sides: a central horseman flanked by pairs of standing figures, all framed within reserved red-clay panels beneath a decorative lotus-palmette frieze.
Roman Oil Lamp (50 BCE – 50 CE)
Far larger and more elaborate than typical everyday roman clay lamps, it combines practical function with high artistic quality, serving as both a source of light and a luxurious decorative object.
Red-Figure Kylix (c. 480 BCE)
When lifting the kylix to drink, its painted interior reveals a lively encounter between the god and a dancing satyr, turning an everyday act of drinking into a moment of myth, humor, and reflection on excess and control.
The Vicarello Goblet (25 BCE – 25 CE)
This small silver Vicarello drinking cup, discovered near ancient thermal springs north of Rome, features a finely detailed relief scene depicting a rustic ritual in honor of Priapus, the Roman god of fertility, gardens, and male sexuality.
The Wade Cup (1200–1221 CE)
This Wade cup, a bowl-shaped drinking vessel, created in Iran during the early 13th century, features a dramatic animated inscription around the rim where Arabic letters are formed by lively full-figure human beings, animals, and birds.
Black-Figure Poseidon Neck Amphora (c. 540 BCE)
The scene has been interpreted as representing either a gathering of gods inculding poseidon for a divine council on Mount Olympus or their departure for the wedding of Peleus and Thetis, a mythological event frequently depicted in Archaic art.
Octafoil-Shaped Mirror Featuring Ci Fei (900-1400 CE)
Its polished front served as a reflective surface, while the intricately decorated back tells a heroic tale, making it both a functional and symbolic object dedicated to Ci Fei.