Marble Basket Cinerary Urn in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, July 2007

Marble cinerary urn with lid
Roman, ca. 10BC- 10 AD

Accession # 37.129 a,b

Marble imitations of wicker baskets that served as cinerary urns were popular in Rome in the Early Imperial period. They were often associated with female burials, and it is attractive to see this example as representing the weaving basket the deceased may have used in life. Weaving was regarded as one of the activities that a virtuous Roman matron should pursue.

Text from the Metropolitan Museum of Art label.