Detail of a Cypriot Terracotta Jug in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, July 2010

Title: Terracotta jug

Medium; Technique: Terracotta

Culture: Cypriot

Period: Cypro-Archaic I

Date: ca. 750–600 B.C.

Dimensions: H. 7 3/4 in. (19.7 cm)

Classification: Vases

Credit Line: The Cesnola Collection, Purchased by subscription, 1874–76

Accession Number: 74.51.531

On View

Description:

In this extraordinary evocative depiction, a woman faces off a horned serpent whose head looks vaguely like that of a ram. The protagonists appear well matched. In many cultures the line between human beings and animals, real or mythological, is permeable. The representation may be associated with an animal fable. Even more, it recalls the dialogue between Eve and the serpent in the Book of Genesis.

Text from: www.metmuseum.org/Works_of_Art/collection_database/greek_...