| Aineta aryballos | |
|---|---|
 The Aineta aryballos displayed in the British Museum | |
| Material | Ceramic |
| Size | 6.35 centimetres (2.50 in) (height)[1] |
| Writing | Ancient Greek (Corinthian alphabet) |
| Created | disputed; c. 625 – c. 570 BCE |
| Discovered | c. 1852 Corinth, Greece |
| Present location | British Museum |
| Identification | 1865,1213.1 |
The Aineta aryballos is an Ancient Greek aryballos, made in Corinth between approximately 625 and 570 BCE. Approximately 6.35 centimetres (2.50 in) in both height and diameter, it was intended to contain perfumed oil, and is likely to have been owned by a high-class courtesan (hetaira) by the name of Aineta, who may be portrayed in a drawing on its handle. The vase's illegal sale to the British Museum in 1865 led to the prosecution of its seller, the Athenian art dealer Athanasios Rhousopoulos, and exposed the latter's widespread involvement in antiquities crime.
The vase is inscribed with a portrait, generally agreed to be that of a woman and probably that of Aineta, who is named in the inscription upon the vase. Below the portrait are the names of several men, generally taken to be Aineta's admirers or lovers. It is likely to have been found in a grave, probably that of Aineta herself. According to Rhousopoulos, it was discovered in Corinth around 1852. In 1877, Panagiotis Efstratiadis, the Ephor General of Antiquities in charge of the Greek Archaeological Service, had Rhousopoulos fined for selling the vase in contravention of Greek law. The case has been called "a milestone in the trafficking of Greek antiquities", in that it represented a relatively rare successful use of state power against the illegal trade in Ancient Greek artefacts.[2]