Amphora (Storage Jar)

One of the first objects to enter the Art Institute’s collection, this amphora represents changes in conservation practices across different centuries. Before it was acquired by the museum in the 19th century, the vessel had broken and been repaired. The staples that hold the foot together are from this early restoration. Some fragments were missing, including important parts of the figural scene depicting the battle between the Greeks and the Amazons. Because filling in these areas would require imaginative reconstruction, these areas of loss were not restored. The lower decorative band, a uniform key pattern, was restored. 20th-century restoration with matte black plaster indicates areas of loss in the band. The fragments of this amphora were reassembled in an earlier century using pieces of other ceramic vessels, but this amphora was left intact by conservators.