Susan, Iran.
4200-3500 B.C.E.
Painted terra cotta.
Cross Cultural Comparisons
Bushel with ibex motifs, 4200--3500 B.C.E., Susa I period, necropolis, acropolis mound, Susa, Iran, painted terra-cotta, 28.90 x 16.40 cm, excavations led by Jacques de Morgan, 1906-08 (Musée du Louvre, Paris)
One of the first ceramic pieces, made from clay and intricately designed with mineral and plant paint in painstaking detail. The vessel portrays a Ibex, a type of goat native to the area, and also canine figures along the rim. At the time, dogs were used to hunt animals like Ibexes. The painting might have been done with small brushes made from plant material or human or animal hair.
Form:
- Uses lines and geometrical shapes; depicts a central ibex.
- Similar bushels range from 0.5 to 2 feet tall.
Function: Funerary purpose; was buried with the dead in Susa.
Content:
- Centralized mountain goat, surrounded by geometrical forms
- Running greyhound-like animals are above the ibex
- Diamond shapes band the top of the vessel.
- Birds encircle the top of the vessel
Context:
- Originated in 4200 BCE.
- The Neolithic Period began in 14,000 BCE.
- People of Susa lived near a fertile river valley.
- Found with 5-10 other similar vessels.
Martínex, Black on black ceramic vessel
The David Vase
Koons, Pink Panther
