Foot of a Cista (Container) with Usil

The vessel foot takes the form of a feline paw surmounted by an attachment plate in openwork relief. The paw is surmounted by an Ionic capital with an incised triangle and a beaded abacus. Atop the capital and extending over both edges is a row of symmetrically opposed cut-out waves. Running to the right over their crests is a nude winged youth, who represents Usil, the Etruscan sun god. His knees are bent in a position known as the "Knielauf," a schema for rapid movement in the art of the Archaic period. His legs are shown in profile to the right, his body and head frontal, and his torso is slightly twisted. Usil wears soft pointed boots with wings attached at the heels. His arms are stretched out sideways in front of his upswept, sickle-shaped wings, the feathers of which are incised. His hair is crowned by a beaded fillet.

Originally one of a set of three, this foot belonged to an Etruscan cista, a cylindrical bronze box used to hold cosmetics. The cista itself rested on a projecting shelf on the back of the foot and the back surface of which is slightly curved. From the curvature of the relief, the cista would have been about twenty centimeters in diameter.