#aryballos

[uncleclaudius]

In the Ancient Greek world aryballos (pl. aryballoi) was a small round flask containing oil or perfume. They were usually spherical or conical, but sometimes they were in animal shapes like these here: a hare, a swan, an owl, and a hedgehog, respectively.

[literarydesire]

Got to work on these badboys yesterday!

[arthistoryanimalia]

Oil flask (aryballos) in the form of a seated monkey

, c. 560 BCE

Terracotta, 9.5 x 5.1 cm (3 3/4 x 2 in.)

on display at Harvard Art Museums 1960.290

“In the 6th century BCE, workshops in…the multicultural contact zone…produced an array of faience flasks combining Egyptian & Greek elements [and] motifs….Whimsical monkey-shaped containers were popular in Italy.”

[yaellaharpe-blog]

Aryballos, Greece, between 520 and 510 BC

Aryballos, Grecia 520 - 510 a. C.

(English / Español)

This ancient Aryballos, a small globular flask used to store perfumes or oils in ancient Greece, offers a fascinating insight into the cultural and artistic representations of the time. Dating to between 520 and 510 BC, the artefact is now kept in the Louvre Museum and shows the faces of two women, one Greek and one Ethiopian, adorned with the Greek word 'ΚΑΑΛΟΣ', meaning 'beauty'.

The inclusion of the Ethiopian woman in the Aryballos is particularly noteworthy, as it reflects the ancient Greek literary tradition of the 'Ethiopian Tales', which described these distant lands on the edge of the known world. These tales, dating from the 8th century BC and reflected in the epic poems of Homer, recount the adventures of Greek deities and heroes, such as Menelaus, on their adventures to these mythical realms.

The juxtaposition of Greek and Ethiopian women in the Aríbalo suggests a cultural exchange and an appreciation of the diverse representations of beauty during this period in ancient Greece. It speaks to the interconnectedness of the Mediterranean world and the curiosity and engagement of the Greek people with distant cultures and civilisations.

In addition, the use of the Aríbalo in bathing ceremonies among athletes further highlights the importance of this artefact. These small flasks were commonly depicted in vase paintings, showing their integral role in the rituals and practices of ancient Greek society.

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Este antiguo Aryballos, un pequeño frasco globular utilizado para almacenar perfumes o aceites en la antigua Grecia, ofrece una visión fascinante de las representaciones culturales y artísticas de la época. Datado entre el 520 y el 510 a. C., el artefacto se conserva actualmente en el Museo del Louvre y muestra los rostros de dos mujeres, una griega y otra etíope, adornadas con la palabra griega "ΚΑΛΟΣ", que significa "belleza".

La inclusión de la mujer etíope en el Aryballos es particularmente notable, ya que refleja la antigua tradición literaria griega de los "Cuentos de Etiopía", que describían estas tierras lejanas en los confines del mundo conocido. Estas narraciones, que datan del siglo VIII a. C. y que se reflejan en los poemas épicos de Homero, relatan las aventuras de deidades y héroes griegos, como Menelao, en sus aventuras hacia estos reinos míticos.

La yuxtaposición de mujeres griegas y etíopes en el Aríbalo sugiere un intercambio cultural y una apreciación de las diversas representaciones de la belleza durante este período en la antigua Grecia. Habla de la interconexión del mundo mediterráneo y de la curiosidad y el compromiso del pueblo griego con culturas y civilizaciones distantes.

Además, el uso del Aríbalo en ceremonias de baño entre atletas resalta aún más la importancia de este artefacto. Estos pequeños frascos se representaban comúnmente en pinturas de jarrones, mostrando su papel integral en los rituales y prácticas de la sociedad griega antigua.

[heracliteanfire]

Perfume bottles.

Kamiros, Rhodes, Greece, ca 550BCE 

[I think they’re all from the same place, it’s hard to work out from the BM website]

(via aryballos | British Museum)

[lionofchaeronea]

Ancient Greek aryballos in the form of the conjoined heads of two women. Artist unknown; ca. 460 BCE. Now in the Metropolitan Museum of Art.

[glitchy-creations]

Another piece is done and I love this little guy!

This is an “early aryballos” (according to the book I’ve been using for reference) that I painted Athena’s owl on! I think it came out super cute 🥰

This piece is primarily wheel thrown with the handle being hand built. For the rim I just threw a tiny ring on the wheel and attached it by hand for the sake of my own sanity.

This piece is made with the same engobe and Amaco glaze combo as the others.

Bonus: New group picture!

[humanitarianhistory]

"Terracotta Aryballos (Perfume Vase) in the form of a sandaled right foot", Rhodian, Mid-Sixth Century BCE

Getting a Footing

I figured that for my first post I might as well address that yes, my icon is a foot. Well, it's not a foot in a "c'est n'est pas une pipe" kind of way. This beautiful object is a 6th-century BCE Aryballos, a specific type of Greek vase for holding oils, mostly perfumes, from the island of Rhodes. These vases come in all sorts of shapes and sizes, depicting scenes, animals, geometric patterns, or even, human figures.

The sandaled foot caught my attention the first time I ever visited the Met Museum. With my background being in Costume Design, my first immediate thought was "This is fantastic costume research". Very rarely do you get a three-dimensional depiction of clothing from ancient times in such considerably great shape. What I also found interesting is that this is not the only foot-shaped Aryballos in the Met's Collection, there was another, different in design, but also was an excellent depiction of Ancient Greek footwear. It reminded me of modern examples of foot-wear-shaped perfume bottles such as Carolina Herrera's Good Girl collection, pictured below, a parallel that greatly entertains me. Finding those commonalities with the ancients is one of the things I love most about archaeology and it poses the idea that maybe the ancient Greeks weren't unlike ourselves.

I was doing some reading on Ancient Greek perfumes in preparation for this post and came across an article by the Museum of Perfume Paris in which the author shares the story of Phaon, an old, ugly sailor, who was gifted a scented ointment by the goddess Aphrodite. This ointment when applied made Phaon young and beautiful, and any woman who saw him fell in love with him. Phaon's story is an interesting explanation of the romantic powers of perfume in Greek mythology, but it wasn't the only one. In the Illiad, song XIV, Helen applies perfume with the hopes of winning back her husband after the events of the Trojan War. It made me wonder if this Aryballos could have been a gift between lovers. Maybe as a way to remember their love or memorialize the beauty of their betrothed. Many Aryballos in the Met and others' collections are shaped like the helmeted heads of warriors, perhaps gifts for their loved ones as they went off to war.

It is important to note that perfumed oils were used by both men and women, and for a variety of occasions including religious ceremonies, weddings, funerals, and even athletic competitions. With that in mind, Aryballoi, in general, certainly uphold and project typical Ancient Greek values, such as class, gender, faith, and bravery, but I am curious as to the specific story behind the sandaled foot. Was it simply a display of socioeconomic status? Or perhaps it once stood as a reminder of love and admiration (The romantic in me likes to imagine so). I will leave you with these thoughts and I am interested to hear your own opinions.

Other Aryballoi in the Met's Collection. Left: Helmeted Soldier Aryballos, Right: Sandaled Foot Aryballos

Carolina Herrera's Good Girl Collection, Footwear Inspired Packaging

Read more about Greek Aryballoi and Ancient Perfumery below:

"Divine Scents in Ancient Greece" by Isabelle Bardiès, Musee du Parfum

"Perfumery from Myth to Antiquity" by Dimitra Voudouri & Christine Tesseromatis, International Journal of Medicine and Pharmacy

"The Greek Sense of Smell: Olfactory Perception and the Sociocultural Roles of Perfume in Antiquity" by Grainne Louise Grant, University of Exeter

[thewordygreenlion]

Greek Pottery: Soldier-Head Aryballos (E. Greek, 600-575BCE)

[quo-usque-tandem]

Aryballos - Greece, 6th century B.C.E.

[blueiscoool]

Roman Glass Aryballos (oil bottle) 1st–3rd century CE

Blown glass. Dimensions: H.: 2 1/16 in. (5.2 cm).

[lturnips]

tag urself

[duringandafter]

Faience aryballos (oil flask) in the form of a hedgehog,  6th century BCE

[thoodleoo]

huge fan of this aryballos dating from c.670 BC (roughly a century after we believe the greeks adapted the phoenician writing system for their own use) that basically says "if you touch my shit i hope your eyeballs explode"

[kebriones]

Having second thoughts,son of Kleinias?

(Socrates getting ready for his wrestling practice with Alcibiades, from Alcibiades' story in the symposium. They would usually have their oil in an aryballos. The ribbon Socrates has in his mouth is his dogtie)

(I wanted to try some stuff with my layer arrangements so I used this socrates idea i've had for months to motivate me to actually do it)

[lionofchaeronea]

A physician treats a patient. Attic red-figure aryballos, name-vase of the Clinic Painter; 470s BCE. Now in the Louvre. Photo credit: Marie-Lan Nguyen/Wikimedia Commons.