Amphora Rhyton with Lion-Griffin Handles

A variety of gold and silver vessels, including amphora-rhyta like this, was used by the elite of the Achaemenid Persian Empire in their ceremonial banquets. These amphorae often have handles that take the form of mythical creatures: winged bulls, horses, goats, or, as on this vessel, lion-griffins (winged lions with goat's horns). A spout projects from one side of the rounded bottom, making the vessel a type of rhyton (Greek for “flowing vessel”).The form and decoration of the vessel reflect the Persian Empire's vast scale and cosmopolitan nature. The shape, the lion-griffin handles, and the rosette on the bottom are characteristic of the objects made in the Persian heartland in present-day Iran, while the overlapping lotus decoration on the body is drawn from Egyptian art. The style is not typical of the vessels from the royal court in Persia, and the vessel is more likely a product of a workshop in Asia Minor, probably in Pontos, on the southeastern coast of the Black Sea.