Greece / 600–480 BCE
Siren-Shaped Perfume Flask
The Cleveland Museum of Art catalogs Siren-Shaped Perfume Flask as sculpture (Greece · 600–480 BCE).
In the Odyssey , Odysseus’s crew escapes the sirens by plugging their ears with wax.
A CLOSER LOOK
The museum identifies this sculpture as terracotta.
The museum's collection notes: A half-bird, half-woman creature, a siren lured sailors to death by the sweetness of her song. The most famous sirens appear in the ancient epic the Odyssey . Shaped like a siren, this vessel likely held valuable perfumed oil. Its small mouth limited spillage, and a string attached to the loops on its back allowed it to hand or hold a stopper.
FOLLOW THE EVIDENCE
The Cleveland Museum of ArtSiren-Shaped Perfume FlaskOriginal explanation based on the sources above. Images carry their own reuse terms.