Here you find an Etruscan Genucilia Patera from circa 370 to 350 B.C. Small plates of this type are characteristic of local production influenced by Greek mainland styles. The Genucilia Group comprises of a group of plates produced in Etruria (modern day central Italy) in the 4th century B.C. Mainly manufactured by workshops of Ionic potters who settled in Vulci. The patera itself is a shallow footed bowl used to make offerings which also found itself used by the Romans after the fall of Etruscan society.
This patera has a central cross dividing the interior into four sections, each with 3 dots and the outer rim has a five-pointed star. Measures 5.5 inches in diameter and is intact!
For reference see: “The Genucilia Group: A Class of Etruscan Red-Figured Plates” Del Chiaro, Mario A. University of California Press Berkeley 1957
Provenance: Ex Smith Collection.
