Plastic Lekythos in the Shape of a Hare

East Greek, circa late 7th century B.C.
Height: 22.3 cm

This playful vase is meticulously modeled in the shape of a dead hare.  Its head and ears are thrown back with the mouth open, revealing sharp incisors.  The forepaws extend forward, and the underbelly of the hare is a pale yellow. 

The painted detail is painstaking and extensive: the all-over brown stippling to indicate the fur, the white-dotted brown rims of the ears with their red interiors, and the red and brown disk eyes with incised and brown-painted borders. 

This seemingly simple vase is the finest example of its kind, fully imbued with the sensitivity and skill of the East Greek potters.

Exhibited: University Museum, University of Pennsylvania, loan 1959.

Bibliography:  Buranelli, The Etruscans, Legacy of a Lost Civilization from the Vatican Museums, 1992, no.85.

Provenance: Münzen und Medaillen, Basel