Mysterious Baskets

I’m thinking about basket shapes and their representations in Roman Art today. And, as so often, the things I’m not looking for seem far and away the most interesting.

There are at least two Campana plaque types with an oddly shaped basket full of fertility symbols including an erect phallus. [I love this type of plaque. so there are earlier posts]

This one is in the Louvre:

They have others of the same type.

I wish I knew more exactly what was restoration and what original on these pieces. They certainly don’t all come from the same mould even if they have basically two of the same figures on all three.

My interest in these is because the clearly show the precedence for the scene on the East Wall of the Villa of the Mysteries with the revealing of the basket contents and the winged figure.

The second type shows other uses of the same ritual basket shape and its striking contents.

I’ll come back and add more if I find more.

Next Day.

I spotted the same basket shape in another fresco in Naples Museum but need fuller citation.

I don’t know what the mango shaped fruit like objects are, maybe badly rendered figs?! The eggs don’t inspire confidence in the artist’s skill. there might be a head of garlic above the glass pitcher. There are clearly two torches and a covered garlanded basket with ribbons. These and the ivy vine lets us be confident the artist is invoking not just a domestic still-life scene but also a ritual one.