Newari Ceramic Oil Lamp

A pale, flat-bottomed dish shaped like a tiny pond with a lumpy, scalloped edge.

This terra cotta oil lamp is Newari, from Kathmandu Valley, Nepal, and dates to the late 19th or early 20th century. Terra cotta is unglazed fired clay, porous and warm in color, and it has been shaped into lamps, vessels and figures for thousands of years. A low oblong tray in chalky gray-beige, with a shallow oval basin and short raised bumps at the edges. One end tapers into a lobed handle. The surface is dusty and slightly pitted. It is 4.5 inches wide, 7 deep and 1.75 high.

Rough-edged, but plainly meant for something small and useful.