Object type
unguentarium
Culture/period
Protohistory
Materials
alabaster
Technique
carving, polishing
Mint
Production date
-500 / -200
Current location
Centre Interpretació
Archaeological site
Olèrdola. Cisterna-pedrera (sector 03)
Township
Olèrdola (Europa, Espanya, Catalunya, Barcelona, Alt Penedès)
Dimensions
63 x 20 mm
Description
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Flask in alabaster. A carved tubular vessel with conical base, fusiform body. 10 fragments are preserved, allowing the reconstructing of the container. It displays typical white to ochre veining of alabaster. The end was found in 1985 and the rest in the excavations of 1990, in a room of the Iberian period situated in the central part of the deposit (Sector 03). The origin is uncertain, but production should be placed in the area of Egypt, Phoenicia or Rhodes.
This is a very unique piece, which is rarely found in domestic areas, as they are usually part of funerary objects, as shown for example in Empúries. Such bottles containing oils and perfumes came from the eastern Mediterranean. They were certainly a luxury product, both the content and the packaging itself.
Dating is problematic. Recovered in a layer of the second century BC, it has parallels with copies of this chronology or slightly older (fourth or third centuries BC), which are usually rounded with a less elongated base. The conical end resembles some specimens located in the Etruscan area, of ceramic or glass, dating from around the sixth century.
The use of ointments and perfumes originated in the Middle East, with dry and hot weather where it was necessary to protect the body with better hygiene. Egyptian civilization promoted their use in the rest of the Mediterranean with some artisans, "the ointment cooks" who solely produced them.
Primarily reserved for female use, it could also be supposed to be used in funeral rituals (the ungiment of the body of the deceased, initially associated with the worship of the goddess Astarte) or as an offering to the gods. In ancient Greece it was also used in the world of sport. No wonder, then, that in the Iberian Peninsula most known specimens come from the funerary field, such as those from the Phoenician necropolis of Larita (Almuñecar, Andalusia) -some urns with Egyptian inscription of the ninth-seventh centuries BC – from the Punic necropolis of Puig des Molins (Ibiza) or Greek necropolis of Bonjoan in Empúries.
Popularizing and marketing these cosmetics led to the appearance of containers of different shapes, made in different materials like alabaster, stone, glass, bronze, ceramics or bone. The alabaster was one of the most valuable because of the qualities as container: opaque, waterproof and watertight. The high production cost meant they were luxury products only affordable by the elite. We can compare the old ointments with current perfume bottles, where not only the quality of the cosmetic but also the artistic quality of the container is valued.
© Museu d'Arqueologia de Catalunya - Olèrdola
Omeka ID
2218