Cypriot Mycenaean Fine Ware Pithoid Jar
Late Cypriot II. (1450–1200 BC), possibly Mycenaean III (1400–1050 BC). Height 16.9cm. Diameter of rim 10.6cm, diameter of base 5.5m
A raised ring base jar with a piriform (pear-shaped) body. It has a wide, short, concave neck and a sloping rim, with three flat handles running from the shoulder to the upper body. Made of hard buff clay with a semi-lustrous buff slip, and decorated in matte dark brown paint. A painted mark appears on the bottom, and the base is fully painted. Bands and lines encircle the lower and middle parts of the body. The shoulder is decorated with a wavy band featuring concentric circles or semicircles, along with an additional band encircling it. Lines and a band run around the neck. The rim, the inside of the neck, and the handles are also painted.
The jar was excavated by the Swedish Cyprus Expedition in 1930 at Enkomi, on the floor in a side chamber of Tomb 18. It has been part of the collection of the Medelhavsmuseet, Stockholm, Sweden (Inv. No.: E. 018 Sk:019) since 1930.