Red-Figure Mug with the Armed Owl
This classical mug features a humorous depiction of an armed owl, inspired by a red-figure kypelon from the Louvre Museum (CA2192), dated to 425–375 BC.
The little owl—symbol of wisdom in ancient Greece—has long been associated with the goddess Athena and the city of Athens. It appears on the iconic silver tetradrachm coin from around 500 BC, a design echoed on the modern Greek one-euro coin, and in a 5th-century BC bronze statue of Athena holding the bird in her hand.
The scene on this mug, produced during the time of the Peloponnesian War, may be seen as an early example of political cartooning in ancient Greek art. It suggests, playfully yet pointedly, that Athens was a city at war—or perhaps that wisdom is our armour in the battle of life.
Dimensions H : 10cm, Rim D : 9cm, Max L : 11,5cm