An Ancient Greek gold rhyton (drinking horn) embellished with grisly scenes of decapitation and disembowelment is to sell later this month.
The rhyton is a ceremonial drinking vessel
The piece dates to circa the 5th to 3rd century BC and was made by the Scythians, a terrifying warrior race who occupied much of eastern Europe and the Middle East at the time.
The design references the Scythian penchant for drinking the blood of their enemies (it’s unclear if this piece was used for this purpose). They also used severed heads as tokens to exchange for shares of plunder.
The lot is offered at TimeLine Auctions in London on November 21, where it’s valued at £10,000-14,000 ($13,073-18,302).
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