Frog Style Terracotta Lamp Fragment with Palm Frond

Description: 

Frog Style Terracotta Lamp Fragment with Palm Frond

2nd-3rd century CE

terracotta: mold-made, fabric: fine buff clay with small inclusions. Munsell: 2.5 Y 7/3 pale yellow
height 1.5 cm
length 7 cm
width 7 cm

Portland State University Middle East Studies Center
Bogue Lamp Collection, Lamp ID #162, PSU 036bis (66)

 

Professor Anne Nicogorski, Willamette University, cited with permission

This is the upper portion of a frog lamp. The design resembles two palm fronds. The pierced fill hole is recessed. Shape: Fragment of upper part of round-bodied lamp with short extended nozzle; central fill hole within concave discus. Decoration: Relief decoration on top consisting of stylized palm fronds on shoulders which terminate in raised bosses w/central depressions; larger relief boss w/ central depression between fronds, opposite the nozzle; depressed circle surrounded by a groove on nozzle axis; incised groove sets off wick hole from body. Inscriptions: None. Condition: Fragment preserving most of upper half of lamp; broken on all sides.