Terracotta Oil Lamp From the Holy Land
Circa 5th – 6th Century AD.
Length: 109 mm - 3 7/8 inches
Mould made slipper-shaped, pinkish terracotta oil lamp with geometric designs covering the top of the body, and oval base ring. The handle is a crude animal head, with the neck marked with a cross.
An unusual lamp from the Christian settlements in the Near East.
Excellent condition, made of fine buff-colored clay.
For a nearly identical example, reference P. Jones, "Collecting Ancient Lamps," 2002, Catalog #564a (Plare 32, Photo 448).
In the villas, palaces and shops of the Greek, Roman and Byzantine Empires terracotta oil lamps were the primary means of artificial lighting. They were usually filled with olive oil and held a wick (linen was the most often used material). They burned for hours to light up the ancient world. The rich, in their villas, needed hundreds; the poor had only a few.
