A direct stylistic descendant of the preceding periods, this flask is an excellent example of its type. It is composed of a spherical body with a straight neck terminating in an everted rim. The handles are applied to a thickened portion of the neck and are attached at the shoulders. The body is beautifully decorated with a concentric circle motif.

From a private American collection.

In excellent condition.

Bibliography:

Ruth Amiran, “Ancient Pottery of the Holy Land”, (Rutgers University Press, 1970), p.276; pl. 95.

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The Iron Age in the Levant was a time of technological advances, migration and change following the collapse at the end of the Bronze Age and culminating in the rise of the Achaemenid Empire.

Vessels of this type came to be known as pilgrim flasks due to the ease with which travellers on pilgrimages would carry their flasks tied to their belt.