By Suzanne Davis and Caroline Roberts
Like all our beloved Ugly Objects, this one is unique, fun, and a little bit hideous. It is a small, hanging lantern in the shape of a woman; you’d use this by putting a candle or oil lamp inside. We chose it to celebrate our enduring quest for illumination as the days get shorter and darker in the Northern Hemisphere—Hanukkah, Kwanzaa, and Christmas celebrations all involve beautiful, twinkling lights, and the same was true for ancient festivals held around this time of year, like Saturnalia.
The lantern comes from the Fayum region of Egypt and dates to the 3rd–4th centuries CE. It was made in a two-part mold and features the bust of a woman atop a fluted pedestal. It is sooty from the flame that burned inside it and, while the surface still has a lot of its original paint, the white ground layer beneath the colors has become puffy and poorly bound—you can see where it broke off right over the woman’s smile, which is still nicely preserved in the ceramic. This makes for an unsettling visual effect—something one might see in a 1950s B horror movie, like a face emerging from a mummy’s wrappings. But perhaps this woman was cocooning for the holiday and is emerging fresh and restored into the New Year? That sounds nice, right?
Either way, we’re wishing you a restful winter holiday season, with lots of twinkly lights and renewal of your own. Happy holidays!
