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Nice-Cimiez: Lamp with Jupiter and Eagle
Terracotta
oil lamps were abundantly used in Roman households and were a fixture of
everyday life. They were typically mold-made and mass-produced, with
widespread evidence of maker's marks and factory production. Romans introduced
lamps into Gaul; many lamps made in Gaul after the Roman conquest were
"franchised" from producers originating in northern Italy. In the early
Imperial period, cheap mass-produced lamps sold for about one As (one-sixteenth
of a denarius, or small silver coin), about one-tenth of a soldier's pay
for one day.
Some lamps, such as this double-beaked example displayed at the
Musée archéologique de Nice-Cimiez,
were more elaborate in both form and the decoration on the medallion or top.
Here the god Jupiter is seen behind an eagle, symbol of Roman military supremacy.
[Fig.1: Terracotta lamp with Jupiter and eagle (Musée
archéologique de Nice-Cimiez; photo: Athena Review).]
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