Object Description
A beautifully rendered Ancient Roman bright red terracotta oil lamp, featuring a long canal nozzle, a slightly concave discus with two filling holes, and a single moulded handle. The lamp’s shoulders are finely decorated with a fish motif arranged in a band running along the two sides of the discus, where the moulded depiction of an intricate fish, detailed with scales and fins can be seen between the two filling holes. The lamp is a fine example of the so-called lamps in Terra Sigillata Africana (TSA), and was moulded in the Roman provinces of North Africa, modern day central Tunisia. The lamp can be classified as type Atlante X, Hayes II A. The reverse features moulded, concentric circles.
Date: Circa 4th – 6th century AD.