Circa 100 AD A beautiful terracotta oil lamp with a circular concave discus with a small wick hole and decorated with a left-facing rider on a horse, concentric ridges on the shoulders, and an angular nozzle with scrolls. During the Roman Empire, a lamp was originally called a ‘lychnus’ (from the Greek ‘??????’) with the oldest Roman lamps dating back to the third century BC. It is thought that the Romans took the idea for lamps from the Greek colonies of Southern Italy. During the Roman Empire, it becamemonplace to use lamps in funeral ceremonies and for public purposes. For a similar lamp, cf. Walters, H. B. (1914). Catalogue of the Greek and Roman Lamps in the British Museum. London, Plate XXI, item n. 571. Size: L:93mm / W:67mm; 42.8g Provenance: Acquired from a London gallery; formerly with Arnos Jumperz, Leverkusen Germany. His collection was formed before 1994 and passed by descent to his family.