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Geometric Storage Jar (Belly-Handled Amphora)

Culture Greek
Title Geometric Storage Jar (Belly-Handled Amphora)
Date 760–740 BCE
Medium Terracotta and pigment
Dimensions Object: 28 × 14 1/4 in. (71.1 × 36.2 cm)
Overall: 28 × 14 1/4 in. (71.1 × 36.2 cm)
Credit Line Given in Honor of Burton Y. Berry and Herman B Wells by Thomas T. Solley, Eskenazi Museum of Art, Indiana University
Accession Number 79.68

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About this Work

Like other large pots made in the earliest phase of Greek history, this amphora was probably used as a grave marker. Its size indicates great skill, since the creation of large-scale pottery is technically challenging. It is also a fine example of the developing interest in precisely drawn geometric decoration, a characteristic that gave the Geometric period its name. The concentric circles were made using a compass with multiple brushes attached.


Provenance research is ongoing for this and many other items in the Eskenazi Museum of Art permanent collection. For more information about the provenance of this artwork, please contact the department curator with specific questions.

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"Geometric Storage Jar (Belly-Handled Amphora) | Collections Online." Collections Online. Sidney and Lois Eskenazi Museum of Art, Indiana University, 2025. https://artmuseum.indiana.edu/collections-online/browse/object.php?number=79.68