WHAT IS THE CRATER ?

CRATER: A large, wide-mouthed, two-handled Greek or Roman bowl or vase, usually made of pottery or metal. It is characteristic of Greece in the Mycenaean and Classical periods. They were used to serve wine, mixed with water in varying proportions, into individual drinking cups, and handed out at banquets and sacrifices. The word is Greek for “mixing bowl.” There is a classification of four types: column crater, volute crater, calyx crater, and bell crater, which take their names from the characteristic shape either of the handle or of the body of the vase.

WHAT IS THE CORINTHIAN POTTERY ?

CORINTHIAN POTTERY: A widely distributed pottery made at Corinth and found throughout the Mediterranean, from the late 7th century bc until the mid 6th century bc. This important stage of vase painting included “naturalistic” designs of animals, maenads, and satyrs and the invention of the black-figure technique and some new shapes, such as the aryballos and alabastron. Proto-Corinthian pottery, most of which is miniature in size, was the first to be decorated in the black-figure painting technique – figure silhouettes drawn in black and filled in with incised details.

WHAT IS THE COLOR COATED WARE ?

COLOR COATED WARE: A way of referring to many kinds of pottery in the Greek and Roman periods that were given an extra surface coating, usually slightly glossy and most often red. Research suggests that the coating was made from fine clay particles suspended in water with a peptizing agent added.

WHAT IS THE COIN ?

COIN: A piece of metal or, rarely, of some other material (such as leather or porcelain) certified by a mark or marks upon it as being of a specific value. Coinage is considered to be any standardized series of metal tokens, their specific weights representing specific values, and usually stamped with designs and inscriptions. Coins or coinlike objects were first issued by the Lydians of Anatolia in the late 7th century bc, made of the gold–silver alloy electrum. Their use was then adopted in the Far East, then around the Mediterranean, and has since spread throughout the world. Early coins were used for specialized, prestigious purposes and not for everyday exchange. The early Greek coins were also made of electrum, silver, or gold; the first Roman coins were produced in the early 3rd century bc and were also made of precious metals. Later in that century the first bronze coin was introduced. These material remains are self-dating, though they do not always date the materials they are found with as they may have been traded, handed down through generations, or displaced in the stratigraphy

of a site.

WHAT IS THE COARSEWARE ?

COARSEWARE: A classification of sandy, rough pottery including Castor ware, New Forest ware, and Rustic ware. [coarse pottery, coarse ware]

WHAT IS THE CLASSİCAL ?

CLASSICAL: A general term referring to the period of time when a culture or civilization reaches its highest point of complexity and achievement. In a broader sense, the term often describes the whole period of Greek and Roman antiquity with the following breakdown: Early Classical 500–450 bc, High Classical 450–400 bc, and Late Classical 400–323 bc. Specifically, the term describes, in New World chronology, the period between the Formative (Pre-Classic) and the Post-Classic, which was characterized by the emergence of city states. During the Classic stage, civilized life in pre-Columbian America reached its fullest flowering, with large temple centers, advanced art styles, writing, etc. It was originally coined for the Maya civilization, initially defined by the earliest and most recent long count dates found on Maya stelae, ad 300–900. A division between Early and Late Classic was arbitrarily set at ad 600, since in some areas, e.g., Teotihuacán, great civilizations had already collapsed; some scholars regard this date as marking the end of the Classic period. By extension, the word came to be used for other Mexican cultures with a similar level of excellence (Teotihuacán, Monte Albán, El Tajín). In these areas the cultural climax was roughly contemporary with that of the Maya, and the term Classic took on a chronological meaning as well. The full Maya artistic, architectural, and calendric-hieroglyphic traditions took place during the Early Classic. Tikal, Uaxactún, and Copán all attained their glory then. In the Late Classic, between ad 600 and 900, ceremonial centers in the Maya lowlands grew in number, as did the making of the inscribed, dated stelae and monuments. The breakdown of the Classic period civilizations began with the destruction of the city of Teotihuacán in about ad 700. Some date the Classic period to ad 300–900. [classic, Classic] 

WHAT IS THE CINERARIUM ?

CINERARIUM: A place for depositing the ashes of the dead after cremation; a niche in a tomb for holding an urn of ashes or a sarcophagus.

WHAT IS THE CHRYSELEPHANTINE STATUE ?

CHRYSELEPHANTINE STATUE: A type of figurine sculpture made of ivory and gold. The flesh was of ivory and the drapery of gold. These were produced in ancient Egypt, Mesopotamia, and Crete, and in Greece from the 6th century bc. They were often colossal cult figures placed in the interiors of major temples, such as that of Minerva by Pheidias, which stood in the Acropolis at Athens and was 12 m (40 feet) high, and that of Zeus, 13.7 m (45 feet) high, also by Pheidias, in the temple of Olympia.

WHAT IS THE CHIOT POTTERY ?

CHIOT POTTERY: Archaic pottery of the Greek island of Chios, though it may also have been made at Naucratis. The pots and chalices had a cream slip and glazed interior. Decoration on the exterior was of scenes with figures; inside were floral patterns.

WHAT IS THE CHALCIDIAN WARE ?

 Chalcidian black figure amphora

CHALCIDIAN WARE: Black-figured pottery found in Etruria and the Chalcidian colony of Rhegium (modern Reggio) in Italy. The style included lettering of the inscriptions as part of the decoration.

WHAT IS THE CHAFING DISH ?

CHAFING DISH: A cooking pot with an outer pan of hot water, used for keeping food warm.

WHAT IS THE CASTOR WARE ?

CASTOR WARE: A distinctive pottery named after a Roman settlement site on the north bank of the Nene in Northhamptonshire. Castor ware is a slate-colored pottery that commonly had hunting scenes of dogs, boars, etc. on the outer surface, which were applied by squeezing paste from a bag or applying by brush. The E barbotine hunt cups were a highlight of the native Romano-British potter’s craft. [Nene Valley ware]

WHAT IS THE CARINATION ?

CARINATION: A sharp break or angle in the curve of the profile of a container or vessel, which resulted in a projecting angle or arris. On ancient jars or pots, it appeared as a sharply angled shoulder dividing the neck from the body of the vessel. It has been considered to be a purely stylistic feature derived from metal prototypes, but it may also be that carinations may have had a practical function – for example, for retaining dregs from a liquid while pouring.

WHAT IS THE CANTHARUS ?

CANTHARUS: in Greek antiquity, a large, two-handled drinking cup. This type of pottery cup was made in Greek-speaking areas and in Etruria between the 8th and the 1st centuries bc and had a deep bowl, a foot, and pair of high vertical handles. It was often consecrated to personifications of Bacchus. [kantharos]

WHAT IS THE CANAANITE AMPHORA ?

CANAANITE AMPHORA: Common transport vessel of the Late Bronze Age in the eastern Mediterranean. Canaanite amphoras average 76 cm (30 inches) in height and have a short, relatively narrow flaring mouth, a wide shoulder with two handles on it, and a tapering profile running down to

a narrow pointed base. They were made in various centers in the eastern Mediterranean and were roughly contemporary with stirrup jars.

WHAT IS THE CAMPANIAN POTTERY ?

CAMPANIAN POTTERY: A type of southern Italian pottery. Production seems to have started before the middle of the 4th century bc, perhaps under the influence of Sicilian pottery. There seem to have been three main centers of production: two at Capua and one at Cumae. Late in its production it seems to draw inspiration from Apulian pottery.

WHAT IS THE CAMEO GLASS ?

CAMEO GLASS: a Roman artifact of layered, multicolored glass with the effect of a cameo cut from onyx. The Portland Vase in the British Museum is an important example.

WHAT IS THE CAMEO ?

CAMEO: An engraving or carving in low relief on a stone.

Cameo portrait of Augustus

WHAT IS THE CALCITE GRITTED WARE ?

CALCITE GRITTED WARE: Pottery with a fabric of crushed calcite (either shell or mineral grit) as a tempering agent, used especially for storage jars, cooking pots, and bowls.

WHAT IS THE CAERETAN WARE ?

CAERETAN WARE: Archaic pottery of Etruria that was probably made at Cerveteri. It was black-figured style