The lamp was shaped simply by folding up the rim of a circular plate – which had previously been turned on a potter’s wheel (the traces of the turning are clearly visible, especially on the rim) – at four evenly spaced points: viewed from above, the lamp thus displays an attractive design reminiscent of a four-petalled flower. The wide, round base provides the lamp with optimum stability, meaning it is unlikely to be knocked over.
The shape, style and decoration of this example are typical of lamps produced during the final centuries of the Empire and the early Byzantine period: the most active workshops were located in North African cities, but their
products were often imitated elsewhere, notably in Italy and Gaul.
Turned lamp in the shape of a bowl with a pinched nozzle, provided with a tiny round central dish for the lower wick and with a ribbon handle connecting the back of the shoulder to the rim of the central dish.
Our lamp is probably a Near Eastern production dated between the 13th and the 14th century A.D.