Object Description
A Late Roman- early Byzantine terracotta oil lamp from North Africa. The lamp features an elongated oval body with nozzle-flukes and a circular discus. A raised ridge surrounds the discus, which continues around the large nozzle hole to form a broad canal. A circular spike like handle, which is flattened on each side and is pierced with a hole, sits at the back of the lamp. The base is supported with a raised, rounded ring from which the handle spine and the two nozzle-fluke spines extend out. A circle is displayed at the centre of the base. The discus is decorated with a standing bishop holding a crosier in his right hand. The robe has been careful carved with incisions to show the folds in the fabric. The figure is flanked by two filling holes. The shoulder is enriched with a band of geometric and dot motifs interspersed with circles.
Date: Circa 4th – 6th century AD