rattle
- Museum number
- 1881,0824.76
- Description
-
Terracotta rattle in form of a pig or wild boar; wheel-made body; incised detail; eyes and snout pierced; body repaired from fragments and complete, apart from the the rattle element which is missing.
- Production date
- 300 BC-50 BC
- Dimensions
-
Height: 7.60 centimetres
-
Length: 14.50 centimetres
- Curator's comments
- This item and GR 1881,8-24.77 are the ones described by Ohnefalsch-Richter in the brief publication of his excavations at Salamis. One, probably the present object, is explicitly stated to have been found in a child's grave (Ohnefalsch-Richter 1881, 244; also Buchholz 1967, 145 no. II.3).
For a discussion of the type see Buchholz 1967, 144ff - the two examples found by Ohnefalsch-Richter are his catalogue nos II,3-4 but he was not aware they were in the British Museum - and Lund 2015, 147-9 who provides an up-to-date catalogue (pp. 300-2). Lund includes them (cat. nos 1658-9) but like Buchholz was also unaware of their existence in the BM collection. The present item is his no. 1654 but this is actually the same as his cat. 1658, while his no. 1659 is GR 1881,8-24.77. To his catalogue must also be added GR 1982,7-29. 89 which is also from a tomb in Salamis excavated by Herbert Kitchener and George Hake.
Kolotourou 2005 discusses the role of rhythm and percussion in ritual: see esp. 186-7.
Bibliography:
Buchholz H.-G. 1967, 'Tönerne Rasseln aus Zypern', AA 1966, 140-51.
Kolorourou K. 2005, 'Music and cult: the significance of percussion and the Cypriote connection', in V. Karageorghis et al. (eds), Cyprus: Religion and society from the Late Bronze Age to the end of the Archaic period (Möhnesee-Wamelm), 183-204.
Lund J. 2015, A study of the circulation of ceramics in Cyprus from the 3rd Century BC to the 3rd Century AD. Gösta Enbom Monographs 5 (Arrhus).
- Location
- Not on display
- Acquisition date
- 1881
- Department
- Greek and Roman
- Registration number
- 1881,0824.76