BYZANTINE TERRACOTTA OIL LAMP WITH LEAPING HOUND AND CHI-RHO

Ca. AD 300 - 500. A mould-made terracotta oil lamp with a rounded body, elongated nozzle and projecting lug handle. The recessed discus is pierced by two filling holes and decorated with a leaping hound, its elongated body, pointed muzzle and extended legs depicted in profile. The shoulder is decorated with palm fronds arranged around the discus. The underside has a base ring enclosing a Chi-Rho monogram. For a similar subject, see: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Object Number: 74.51.2100, 74.51.2057. Size: 60mm x 125mm; Weight: 165g Provenance: Private London collection, acquired on the German art market; Ex. Private collection, Cologne, 1965?2004; acquired from the German art market.