Aryballos with warriors

Aryballos with Warriors – Black-Figure Technique
This small, spherical oil flask — known as an aryballos — was commonly used by athletes in ancient Greece to carry perfumed oil for their daily grooming and rituals. Decorated in the black-figure technique, this piece depicts a procession of warriors, captured mid-march, shield in hand, spear at the ready, wearing Corinthian helmets.
Scenes of warriors were not just decorative, but also conveyed ideals of bravery (areté) and honor, central values in the Archaic period (7th–6th c. BCE). The aryballos itself originated in Corinth and later spread to other Greek city-states, becoming a symbol of athletic and heroic identity.

H. 11 cm