The Warren Cup
Roman, mid-1st century
AD
Said to be from Bittir (ancient Bethther),
near Jerusalem
A silver cup with relief decoration of
homoerotic scenes
The Cup takes its name from its first owner in
modern times, the art-lover and collector Edward Perry Warren
(1860-1928). After Warren's death the cup remained in
private hands, largely because of the nature of the subject matter.
Only with changing attitudes in the 1980s was the cup exhibited to
the public, and in 1999 the British Museum was able to give this
important piece a permanent home in the public
domain.
The cup was
originally made up of five parts - the thin-walled bowl with its
high relief scenes, raised by hammering; an inner liner of thicker
sheet silver with a solid rim, which would have made both drinking
and cleaning easier; a pair of handles (now lost) and a cast foot
soldered to the base.
The
scenes on each side shows two pairs of male lovers. On one side the
erastes (older, active
lover) is bearded and wears a wreath while the
eromenos (younger
'beloved', passive) is a beardless youth. A servant
tentatively comes through a door. In the background is a draped
textile, and a kithara
(lyre) resting on a chest. In the scene on the other side the
erastes is beardless,
while the eromenos is
just a boy. Auloi
(pipes) are suspended over the background textile, and folded
textiles are lying on a chest. The surroundings suggest a cultured,
Hellenized setting with music and
entertainment.
Representations
of sexual acts are widely found in Roman art, on glass and pottery
vessels, terracotta lamps and wall-paintings in both public and
private buildings. They were thus commonly seen by both sexes, and
all sections of society. The Romans had no concept of, or word for,
homosexuality, while in the Greek world the partnering of older men
with youths was an accepted element of education. The Warren Cup
reflects the customs and attitudes of this historical context, and
provides us with an important insight into the culture that made
and used it.
D. Williams, 'The Warren silver cup', British Museum Magazine: th-12, 35 (Autumn / Winter 1999), pp. 25-28
J.R. Clarke, Looking at lovemaking : constr (London, University of California Press, 1998)