About this artwork
Vessels of this sort were used to hold cosmetic oil and were standard accessories for Roman bathing. The bronze chains looped around the user’s wrist. In the absence of soap, oil was rubbed onto the skin, and then scraped off with a strigil, an instrument with a curved, blunt blade.
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Status
- Currently Off View
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Department
- Arts of the Ancient Mediterranean and Byzantium
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Culture
- Ancient Roman
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Title
- Aryballos (Container for Oil) with Chain
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Place
- Syria (Object made in)
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Date
- 50 CE–150 CE
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Medium
- Glass, blown technique, and bronze
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Dimensions
- 7.4 × 7.5 × 7.5 cm (2 7/8 × 3 × 3 in.)
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Credit Line
- Gift of Theodore W. and Frances S. Robinson
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Reference Number
- 1947.934
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IIIF Manifest
- https://api.artic.edu/api/v1/artworks/62022/manifest.json