The central tondo shows a winged deity of Assyrian type felling a rampant lion with a sword. The surrounding frieze presents a variety of animal and narrative motifs, including two specifically Egyptian subjects: a sphinx wearing the Egyptian double crown and a lion treading over a dead man, symbolizing the pharaoh dominating his enemies. The broad outer band features a variety of combats. Of greatest importance, however, are two inscriptions. At the top, above an Assyrianizing figure killing a lion, a Cypriot syllabic inscription reads, "I am [the bowl] of Akestor, king of Paphos." It was partly obliterated and replaced by "I am [the bowl] of Timokretes," presumably the next owner. The bowl is exceptionally significant for its excellent condition, high quality, and amalgam of Egyptian, Assyrian, and Phoenician features.

Inscription: [inside the bowl] "I am [the bowl] of Akestor, king of Paphos"; [within the medallion] "I am [the bowl] of Timokretes."

Said to be from Kourion, Cyprus (Cesnola 1877, p. 329).

Until 1874, Cesnola Collection, excavated by General Cesnola in Kourion, Cyprus; acquired 1874, purchased from General Luigi Palma di Cesnola.

Cesnola, Luigi P. di. 1877. Cyprus: Its Ancient Cities, Tombs, and Temples. A Narrative of Researches and Excavations during Ten Years' Residence in That Island. London: John Murray, pp. 328-29, ill.

Myres, J. L. 1914. Handbook of the Cesnola Collection of Antiquities from Cyprus. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, no. 4554.

Harper, Prudence et al. 1971. "Origin and Influence--Cultural Contacts: Egypt, the Ancient Near East, and the Classical World." The Metropolitan Museum of Art Bulletin 29(7): p. 322.

von Bothmer, Dietrich. 1984. "A Greek and Roman Treasury." The Metropolitan Museum of Art Bulletin 42(1): no. 10, pp. 6-7, 20.

The Metropolitan Museum of Art. 1987. Greece and Rome. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, no. 4, pp. 16-17.

Hermary, A., and O. Masson. 1990. "Deux vases inscrits du sanctuaire d'Aphrodite à Amathonte (1865-1987)." Bulletin de correspondance hellénique 114: 198, fig. 14.

Karageorghis, Vassos. 2000. Ancient Art from Cyprus: The Cesnola Collection in The Metropolitan Museum of Art. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, no. 299, pp. 76, 182-83.

Lightfoot, Chis S. 2000. "The New Cypriot Galleries at The Metropolitan Museum of Art." Minerva 11, no. 3: 20-21, fig. 10.

Karageorghis, Vassos. 2002. Early Cyprus: Crossroads of the Mediterranean. Los Angeles: Getty Publications, pl. 321.

Iacovou, M. 2003. "The Late Bronze Age Origins of Cypriot Hellenism and the Establishment of the Iron Age Kingdoms." In From Ishtar to Aphrodite, 3200 Years of Cypriot Hellenism: Treasures from the Museums of Cyprus, edited by S. Hadjisavvas. New York: Alexander S. Onassis Public Benefit Foundation, pp. 79-85, fig. 7.

Picón, Carlos A., et al. 2007. Art of the Classical World in The Metropolitan Museum of Art. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, no. 279, pp. 240, 461.

Aruz, Joan, Benzel, Kim and Jean M. Evans (ed.). 2009. Beyond Babylon: Art, Trade, and Diplomacy in the Second Millennium B.C.. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, p. 446, fig. 143.