Beautiful Greek Canosan Pottery Lidded Pyxis, TL Tested

**Originally Listed At $1200**

Magna Graecia, Apulia, Canosa, ca. second half of the 4th century BCE. A beautifully preserved ceramic lidded pyxis, cylindrical in form, with a flanged base and delicate disc-shaped foot. The rim of the vessel has a slight lip which allows its lid to fit in place. The lid is saucer-shaped, with a round indentation at its center and gently sloping sides. The edges of the lid hang out over the vessel, mirroring the form of the flanged base. In the distinctive Canosan style, the surface is painted a creamy white, with pretty, bright colored flowers in shades of red, pink, blue, and yellow encircling the lid and the body. The pyxis form is found throughout the ancient Near East and the Classical world, a rounded vessel with small fitted lid, originally made to hold cosmetics, trinkets, or jewelry. The form was probably imported to the ancient Levant from Mycenaean Greece. Size: 8.25" W x 4.75" H (21 cm x 12.1 cm)

Canosa, or Canosion as it was known then, was a major center of the ceramics and pottery trade when it was a Greek polis. It produced truly unique pottery, completely different in decoration style (although not in shape) from earlier and neighboring traditions. The clay is buff, with the decoration applied directly to it without the use of slip. The entire body was covered with white slip, with a second ground of blue color applied over the background. The blue pigment used here is known as Egyptian blue, a famous ancient pigment made from calcium copper tetrasilicate, believed to be the first synthetic pigment.

This piece has been tested using thermoluminescence (TL) analysis and has been found to be ancient and of the period stated. A full report will accompany purchase.

Provenance: private East Coast, USA collection; ex-William Froelich collection, New York, USA, acquired in the 1970s

All items legal to buy/sell under U.S. Statute covering cultural patrimony Code 2600, CHAPTER 14, and are guaranteed to be as described or your money back.

A Certificate of Authenticity will accompany all winning bids.

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#145298
Condition Report: One side of lower body has stabilized hairline crack. Tiny crack on one side of lid. Otherwise the body is in very nice condition. Extensive encrusted patina on interior, possibly from having lead/iron objects placed into it. Deposits on exterior with many areas of original pigment shining through.