Corinthian Pottery black-figured aryballos depicting a panther, Circa 6th-3rd Century BC

This piece is a Corinthian globular aryballos, a type of small ceramic container used in Ancient Greece, mainly during the Proto-Corinthian and Corinthian periods (7th and 6th centuries BC). It was used to store perfumed oils, ointments or balms. It was a common object among athletes, who wore it hanging from their wrists on a strap so they could anoint themselves before exercise.

The piece is decorated using the black-figure technique, which originated in Corinth. It features a panther (a common motif in the Corinthian orientalising style) accompanied by dotted or “incised” rosettes in the field, which served to fill the empty space.