Byzantine Oil Lamp

Holy Land, Judaea, Iron Age oil lamp, c. 1200 – 586 BC. Excellent wheel-made buff clay oil lamp with classic ‘pinched’ nozzle and flattened bottom.

Lamps such as this one consist of a bowl to hold fuel, which was usually olive oil, and a spout to support a wick, which was probably made of flax.

The shape of these lamps changed over time, going from an open bowl with four pinched spouts to the one-spouted type shown here and, finally, to a closed lamp with a single spout. These differences in shape are one type of evidence used by archaeologists to identify the age of the pottery.

Parthian Terra-Cotta Head of Male, c. 100 AD. Found in Turkey. From the collection of Robert C. Hamer. Mr. Hamer was in the U.S. State Department and served in Jordan, Iran, and Turkey among other Near Eastern Posts. He left Jordan in June 1955 and Turkey in June 1966 and never returned to either country. All artifacts purchased or found overseas were brought in to the USA prior to July 1966.

Roman Bronze Horse Head c. 1st-3rd Century AD. Found in Turkey.

From the collection of Robert C. Hamer. Mr. Hamer was in the U.S. State Department and served in Jordan, Iran, and Turkey among other Near Eastern Posts. He left Jordan in June 1955 and Turkey in June 1966 and never returned to either country. All artifacts purchased or found overseas were brought in to the USA prior to July 1966.

Roman Terra-Cotta Face Fragment, c. 2nd-3rd Century AD. From the collection of Robert C. Hamer. Mr. Hamer was in the U.S. State Department and served in Jordan, Iran, and Turkey among other Near Eastern Posts. He left Jordan in June 1955 and Turkey in June 1966 and never returned to either country. All artifacts purchased or found overseas were brought in to the USA prior to July 1966.

Roman Marble Head. 1st-2nd Century AD. Part of the Hamer Collection. Found in Turkey.