Unam Magnum Scutellam de Onichio: The Many Lives of the Tazza Farnese

The Tazza Farnese is a large-scale sardonyx phiale (a shallow bowl) with a diameter of about 22 centimeters. The Tazza has caught the attention of numerous historical figures throughout antiquity, but despite how coveted the object may have been, records of its provenance before the 1400s are dissatisfactory or entirely nonexistent. This project seeks to shape a number of clear, thorough timelines for the object, as a synthesis of the many conflicting scholarly theories for its chronology. Furthermore, it examines the Tazza in the contexts of the cultures it was immersed in and investigates the way it was interpreted by its proprietors.