Object Description
A fine Roman redware terracotta bowl, decorated with gladiatorial and hunting scenes. The bowl sits on a circular ring foot, with its base extending upwards towards the slightly convex walls of the vessel. The curved walls taper inwards at the neck, before flaring out into an everted rim. The sides of the bowl have been decorated with several figures even spaced apart, including a gladiator. He is depicted with his right leg extended, left leg bent, and right arm raised, engaging in battle with a leopard. The feline is thrown over his shoulder, with its large head pressed against the warrior’s torso. Two more feline figures, lions, leap towards the heroically nude figure, one behind the other. Behind the pair of lions, a stag is mounted by an attacking animal, likely a boar. Another boar leaps towards the scene, as if joining in on the hunt. The bowl has been further embellished with an encircling incised line above the main register. This style of red-ware, with applied appliqué decoration, was common in North Africa, with workshops in Tunisia.
Date: Circa 3rd Century AD