The Cup of Socrates: Sympotic Cups Over Time Topic Code

Kathleen M. Lynch (University of Cincinnati)

The quintessential sympotic drinking vessel is the kylix, a stemmed cup with broad, shallow bowl. The ceramic form comes into existence at the beginning of the 6th century B.C. and rises in popularity with the symposium in the Late Archaic period. However, by the end of the 5th century B.C., the kylix is no longer the most popular sympotic drinking vessel. The stemless cup, in both plain black and red-figure, becomes the most common form of drinking cup. But not for long. By the mid 4th century B.C. the black-glaze Classical kantharos was the most popular drinking cup form. Data from the Athenian Agora excavations paints a picture of the diminishing importance of the ceramic kylix, so much so that we must re-envision the participants in Plato’s late 5th century B.C. sympotic dialogues as holding stemlesses, not kylikes.

Sets of symposium equipment contained just one krater and one oinochoe, but multiple drinking cups. Furthermore, the drinking cup was the most personal item in the symposium set with each drinker bringing or assigned his own. Thus, it is not surprising that cups would reflect the most change. The reason for the shifts from kylix to stemless cup to Classical kantharos may be simply one of fashion. The kylix’s long history may have made it seem “old fashion” at the end of the 5th century B.C. when pottery shapes were increasingly adopting metallic characteristics. Agora evidence also documents the popularity of stemlesses in public dining assemblages. Perhaps the delicate stems of kylixes proved too fragile for frequent public use, and the wide exposure to public dining in the second half of the 5th century B.C. affected private trends.

The rapid shifts in fashion may also reflect the unstable political and social times of the 4th century B.C. Just as the stemless became popular during the Peloponnesian War, so too the kantharos takes over during the fractional and fretful first half of the 4th century. Changes in pottery styles or forms are seldom directly associated with historical change; however, they can be affected by social change and pressures associated with historical events. Shifts in fashion can occur rapidly at times when consumers are searching for stability. That the two new forms closely emulate metallic forms suggests a trend toward pseudo-luxury that may also be an escape from stressful and strained daily lives.