Object type
oil lamp
Culture/period
Roman world
Materials
pottery
Technique
moulding
Mint
Production date
75 / 160
Museum
Museu de Badalona
Current location
Exposició permanent
Archaeological site
Township
Badalona (Europa, Espanya, Catalunya, Barcelona, Barcelonès)
Dimensions
10 x 7,5 x 4 cm
Description
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It belongs to the commonly called Firmalampen or channel lamps (in this case in the form Bussière C VII). The signature or brand of the lamp manufacturer, FORTIS, is clearly defined on the outer bottom of the piece, in the centre of a circle.
Thanks to this manufacturer's stamp, we know that it was made in Modena (Italy), at that time in Cisalpine Gaul.
This workshop made a large production of channel lamps that spread throughout the empire. It also seems that other productions were made with this brand in Lyon, Trier, Bern, Frankfurt and Rome, which were perhaps imitative workshops given the success of the lamps. In the Iberian Peninsula they are documented in places as diverse as Empúries, Mataró, Tarragona, Astorga, Palencia, Mahon, Conimbriga, and now also in Badalona, where some fragments were known and now we have this almost entire piece (only part of the beak is missing).
Another characteristic of these lamps is that most do not have a handle. Some have, around the disk, two or three perforated lugs to be able to pass a cord or metal thread through them to hang them. In this case, the piece has three.
The very well preserved relief decoration of a tragic theatrical mask stands out. With a high hairstyle on the forehead and long hair, a marked nose, almond-shaped eyes and an open mouth, it is characteristics of theatrical masks of the imperial era.
It is one of the few models of this type that has three lugs to be able to hang it.
© Museu de Badalona
Omeka ID
1908