Almost intact, heavily corroded object, discovered in 1995, during the Makrygiannis plot excavation, west of METRO I street.

It is an oblong, cylindrical stem with flattened endings that are pierced. Its use is unclear. Similarly shaped objects –usually, however, of a bigger size- are identified as handles of wooden shields, affixed to them with nails passing through the holes. Other times they are mentioned as thick needles, although the lack of a pointy end, renders this suggestion problematic. In another case they are classified as “building” tools for various construction and building projects, an identification that also does not seem satisfactory.

The skyphos had been deposited in a small pit opened below the earthen floor of an area whose limits have not been traced. Although the concealment was intentional, the reasons behind it are unknown. Perhaps it constitutes an early example of a foundation ritual, one of the many “building deposits” that were discovered in the Makrygiannis plot or perhaps it was a hiding spot the owner chose for safekeeping his valuable objects in times of imminent danger.