Band cup

The lip of a band cup is black and slightly concave.

The external figural decoration is in the area of the handles, often framed by palmettes.

Another very rare group of specimens, attributed to the potter Andokides and his workshop, have figural decoration on the flat base of the foot.

For example, it may have been more pleasant to drink from the undecorated black-slipped lip of a band cup, while the strong ridge underneath the rim of lip cups would have prevented spilling more effectively.

The differences amongst these cups can be found through their varying sizes and decorated imagery; these unique characteristics were influenced by the workshops they were created in rather than a set formula for the cup design.

Band cup, potted by Amasis , painted by the Amasis Painter . Dionysos , Ariadne , satyrs and maenads , '’circa’’ 550/540 BC, Louvre .
Battle scene on a band cup by an unknown artist, '’circa’’ 540 BC, Louvre .