Cypriot small red on Black jug: Middle Bronze Age III (1750 - 1650 BC)

Small Red on Black ware jug. Red lines painted with a multi brush onto a black slip. The slip is severely worn (on one side and the neck) which is frequently the case with this ware, which was only produced in the North East (Karpass peninsular) in a short period at the end of the Middle Bronze Age.  Because of this narrow period of production, and the fact it was exported, it has been used as a date marker when found in Levantine excavations. Situated as this ware is, on the brink of the Late Bronze Age, some examples have a flat bottom, though most, like this piece, have the normal Middle Bronze Age rounded bottom.

Nearly spherical body with cylindrical neck and out turned lip. Strap handle rising from upper body to lip, rising slightly above it. Three vertical groups of red lines, plus a smaller group by the handle, are crossed by one horizontal group of 13 on the midline and another around the neck.