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Roman oil lamp
MadeThis object is part of
Summary
Object No.
H5120-4Object Statement
Oil lamp, part of collection, discus lamp, terracotta, maker unknown, found / bought in Pompeii, possibly Italy, 200-400Physical Description
Ancient earthenware oil lamp, Late Roman discus lamp, probably Italian, possibly WarzenlampThis lamp was made in a very worn mould.
It has a round, high body, with around 5 rows of tiny dots on a fairly flat shoulder. There is a small filler hole, slightly sunken, in the centre of the lamp. A pierced loop handle with 2 grooves is attached to the rear, with the back of the base extended to support the handle. There are traces of volutes on the nozzle sides, terminating on the shoulder in a spiral/large dotted line ?. There is a degenerate channel line ? on nozzle. The round nozzle tip seems to have a thin ridge outlining the outer edge. There is a flat plain base with ridge from the base of handle. The bridge is the highest part, and the nozzle end is higher than back end.
The lamp shows signs of use, with carbon blackening around the wick hole.
Type: this seems to be a Warzenlamp with a ridge from the handle to the base ring. The pear shape of the lamp is also consistent with a Late Roman date.
Marks
On the base 'POMPEI' (sic) is written in pencil, museum number in black ink on baseShort URL
https://ma.as/242249Dimensions
Height
36 mmWidth
60 mmProduction
Made
Notes
There is a white encrustation over the exterior.The lamp was used.
Fabric (from base surface) seems to be a medium/fine fabric, with no stones/inclusions obvious on surface.
Type: Late Roman discus lamp of the central Mediterranean - if decoration is a series of small dots it is one of the Warzenlamp types
Date: 3rd - 4th century AD
Place of manufacture: possibly Italy, as it appears to have been found/bought in Pompei
Terracotta lamps of this type were made through the employment of stone, plaster or terracotta moulds. Normally two moulds were required: a top mould for the top part of the lamp and a bottom mould for the bottom part of the lamp. Clay would be pressed into these moulds forming the shape which also included a nozzle or spout (in some cases more than one) to accomodate the wick and also a filling hole for the oil that would be later poured into the main reservoir of the vessel. Decorative details would have also been added at this point since many of the moulds demonstrated an array of pre-designed motifs on them. Once the clay was pushed into the mould, the mirror image of the motif would be transferred onto the malleable clay. Once the desired shaped had been obtained, the clay was removed from the moulds and the two segments were joined together by the potter, who would smooth out any visible joining lines before baking in a kiln. At times the potter would stamp or scratch a maker's mark on the base before the item was fired. Lamps were mass produced in the Classical and later periods, and the manufacturing techniques allowed for their relatively easy production in specialist pottery workshops.
History
Notes
May have been discovered in Pompeii (written on base) - no further proof, and may simply have been bought there, which suggests it was looted from Pompeii or the Bay of Naples area.Lamps were used throughout antiquity for the principal purpose of lighting in domestic, civic and also religious contexts (funerary or votive) where permament light was required. The origin of the lamp is not known for certain, but it had become commonplace in Greece by the 4th century BCE, where its use replaced that of the torch known from earlier times. Since the large scale production of olive oil which (amongst other things) was used as lamp fuel and constituted part of a major industry in Ancient Greece it is not surprising that the mass-production of lamps occured as they were in constant demand. This demand continued well into the Roman period and the subsequent CE era. As the industry continued to grow, so did the varied styles of lamps, that illustrated incredible diversity in their shapes, decorations and materials. Shapes ranged from simple single nozzled ones to others that had 12 or more spouts. Others demonstrated zoomorphic (animal) or anthropomorphic (human) forms, while others had varied decorations confined to the top of the lamp with vegetable or abstract motifs, but also figural scenes (mythological, legendary, gladiatorial, domestic life, erotica etc). Further, while terracotta was the most common material used for the production of these devices, they were also made in stone or metal such as gold or silver, but they were most commonly produced in bronze.
Cite this Object
Harvard
Roman oil lamp 2021, Museum of Applied Arts & Sciences, accessed 22 October 2021, <https://ma.as/242249>Wikipedia
{{cite web |url=https://ma.as/242249 |title=Roman oil lamp |author=Museum of Applied Arts & Sciences |access-date=22 October 2021 |publisher=Museum of Applied Arts & Sciences, Australia}}We want to hear from you
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