Pyxis with lid

Pyxides have been found as grave goods in female burials and as votive offerings in sanctuaries of female deities. In the early 9th c. BC spherical and pointed pyxides with conical lids were predominant, while in the latter years of the 9th and the early 8th c. BC the flat pyxis replaced the spherical.

This particular type of flat pyxis with horse figurines on the lid seems to have been intended exclusively for male burials and is usually found in rich graves of the period. It is thus probable that the horses were symbols of the aristocratic class of the Knights (Hippeis).

From 750 BC, flat pyxides acquired almost monumental dimensions and became common, while their luxurious variations – crowned by a group of horses, were no longer used only for male burials.