Cyathiscomele Handle | Harvard Art Museums

Identification and Creation

Object Number: 1977.216.2201.5
Title: Cyathiscomele Handle
Classification: Tools and Equipment
Work Type: medical instrument
Date: 1st-4th century CE
Places: Creation Place: Ancient & Byzantine World, Europe, Rome (Latium)
Period: Roman Imperial period
Culture: Roman
Persistent Link: https://hvrd.art/o/98007

Physical Descriptions

Medium: Copper alloy
Technique: Cast
Dimensions: 11.7 x 0.65 cm (4 5/8 x 1/4 in.)
Technical Details: Technical Observations: The patina is crusty green and brown. The tool end is broken off, while the rounded end is preserved. The handle was made by casting with some finishing after casting.

Carol Snow (submitted 2002)

Provenance

Recorded Ownership History: "From Rome" according to Classical Collection index card; received as a gift of H.W. Bell on Feb. 2, 1911.

Acquisition and Rights

Credit Line: Harvard Art Museums/Arthur M. Sackler Museum, Transfer from the Department of the Classics, Harvard University, Gift of H. W. Bell
Accession Year: 1977
Object Number: 1977.216.2201.5
Division: Asian and Mediterranean Art
Contact: am_asianmediterranean@harvard.edu
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Descriptions

Published Catalogue Text: Ancient Mediterranean and Near Eastern Bronzes at the Harvard Art Museums
The bowl of this cyathiscomele has broken off at the beaded decoration on the shaft. The olivoid probe is preserved at the other end of the circular-sectioned shaft.

Greek and Roman medical instruments, many of which were described by ancient authors, have been found, sometimes in sets, throughout the ancient world (1). The instruments could have been used for more than one function, making precise classification difficult in some instances. A cyathiscomele is a type of scoop probe, with a spoon terminal at one end and a probe at the other, used for stirring and applying medicines, among other uses, including cosmetic (2).

NOTES:

1. J. S. Milne, Surgical Instruments in Greek and Roman Times (Oxford, 1907) 1-9; and D. Michaelides, “A Roman Surgeon’s Tomb from Nea Paphos,” Report of the Department of Antiquities, Cyprus, 1984: 315-32, esp. 321-23.

2. Milne 1907 (supra 1) 61-63; Michaelides 1984 (supra 1) 326; and R. Jackson and S. La Niece, “A Set of Roman Medical Instruments from Italy,” Britannia 17 (1986): 119-67, esp. 158.

David Smart

Subjects and Contexts

Ancient Bronzes

Related Works

Verification Level

This record has been reviewed by the curatorial staff but may be incomplete. Our records are frequently revised and enhanced. For more information please contact the Division of Asian and Mediterranean Art at am_asianmediterranean@harvard.edu

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1977.216.2201.5: Cyathiscomele Handle