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Bowl (phiale) with decorations
Near Eastern, Iranian, Persian
Achaemenid
550–331 B.C.
Medium/Technique
Silver with gold overlays
Dimensions
Overall: 4.5 × 19 cm (1 3/4 × 7 1/2 in.)
Credit Line
Harriet Otis Cruft Fund and Edwin E. Jack Fund
Accession Number60.535
CollectionsAncient Egypt, Nubia and the Near East
ClassificationsVessels
DescriptionDrinking bowl / phiale. Inside, design radiating from a central rosette surrounded by alternating lotuses and palmettes. Bowls like this were used for drinking wine. They were held in the flat of the hand and steadied by a finger or thumb placed in the central depression. This type of drinking bowl was adopted by the Greeks in the Hellenistic Period.
ProvenanceSaid to come from Sinope on the south coast of the Black Sea. Before 1960, on the art market, Istanbul [see note]. 1960, sold by Hesperia Art, Philadelphia, to the MFA for $7500. (Accession Date: May 11, 1960)
NOTE: In the curatorial recommendation for the bowl's purchase, it was noted that "a European dealer had been trying hard to acquire it in Istanbul." The bowl was first shipped to the MFA in early February, 1960.
NOTE: In the curatorial recommendation for the bowl's purchase, it was noted that "a European dealer had been trying hard to acquire it in Istanbul." The bowl was first shipped to the MFA in early February, 1960.