Caption:
Terracotta tripod kothon (vessel for perfumed oil). Culture: Greek, Boeotian. Dimensions: H. 6 1/2 in. (16.5 cm)
diameter 7 1/8 in. (18.1 cm). Date: mid-6th century B.C..
On the body are a bearded siren, a sphinx, and a lion. The legs are decorated with two padded dancers, two men with spears, and a running winged figure representing Aristaios, a son of Apollo and the nymph Cyrene, who was well-known in Boeotia. Aristaios was celebrated for his agricultural discoveries and for his gifts to mankind. Here he holds a mattock in his left hand and a small pot in his right. The mattock would have been used to cover the newly sown seeds with soil to protect them from birds; the pot may contain seed.