Situla - Not Just Another Bucket Quiz

Answer: Latin

'Situla' was the Latin word for a bucket, used to describe a wide range of items. Situlae were usually highly decorated, and could be made from a variety of materials, as well as coming in many different sizes and shapes. The earliest situlae date from the Bronze Age (roughly from 1000 BCE), and were generally made of bronze.

Answer: Maori

Situlae have been found all over Europe, from a range of different cultures over a period of several thousand years. Regional styles in terms of preferred materials and forms of decoration, not to mention uses, make them quite distinct. They range from very utilitarian vessels, often made out of pottery, through decorated metal containers, to highly specialized containers.

Answer: Polyvinyl chloride

Bronze may have been the most common material used to make situlae, but other metals such as silver and gold were also used for very special situlae. Examples made from ivory, wood, glass and pottery are also known. Wood and pottery situlae were often painted, rather than having sculpted or embossed decorations.

Answer: Slovenia

Most of the funerary examples of situlae have been found in central and southeast Europe. The Slovenian city of Novo Mesto, near the border with Croatia, has been nicknamed "The City of Situlae" because 19 of them have been found nearby. (I did say relatively many.) Most of these funerary situlae have a narrow neck, making them look more like a vase than a traditional bucket.

Answer: Frieze

Originally an architectural term used to describe the horizontal structure on top of the columns of a classical building, the term frieze has come to be applied to a wide variety of decorations that run in a horizontal band.

The Vace Situla has three friezes. The top one shows foot soldiers, mounted soldiers, and charioteers; the middle has the images of two fighters and the trophy for which they are contending, along with some other everyday activities; the bottom frieze is a series of animals (hard to recognize, but some of them have horns). The friezes were produced by a mixture of embossing and engraving the outermost of the three sheets of bronze that were used to form the situla.

Answer: Isis

Isis was the Egyptian goddess of motherhood and fertility - hence the life-giving water carried in buckets shaped like breasts. The other answers are goddesses with similar roles in other belief systems - Chiconahui for the Aztecs, Mbama Mwana Waresa for Zulus, and Haumea for traditional Hawaiian beliefs.

Answer: Islam

The Nasrids were the last Islamic dynasty on the Iberian peninsula, and were responsible for the construction of the palace known as the Alhambra. Islamic art is traditionally non-representational, to avoid any possibility of producing idols.

The Nasrid situla is decorated with niello, a black substance formed from a mixture of sulphide compounds of copper, silver and lead which is worked into designs that have been etched in another metal - in this case, bronze.

Answer: Netherlands

The site called the Vorstengraf is one of the largest burial mounds in the Netherlands. Two more kingly burial mounds were later uncovered nearby. All three have proved to be rich sources for items of archaeological interest. The Vorstengraf situla, discovered during the construction of a trailer park in 1933, can be seen at the Rijksmuseum van Ousheden in Leiden, Netherlands.

Answer: Holy water

The aspergillum (usually either a brush or a hollow perforated ball) was dipped into the holy water in the situla, and then shaken so that the holy water was sprinkled over the congregation. The situla was usually a straight-sided cylindrical shape, and was often made of bronze, although situlae designed for use on special occasions could be made of many different materials.

The situlae used in Christian ceremonies are those most familiar to many. Liturgically, the container is often referred to as an aspersorium rather than a situla.

Answer: Life of Christ

This stunning ivory situla has twelve scenes from the Passion of Christ (events leading up to his crucifixion) carved in two rows. It was probably made around 980 CE. Ivory situlae were crafted for very special events, such as an imperial visit - there are three known ivory situlae from about this same time, thought to have been made to be used during a tour of the empire by Otto II of Milan.