Ostrich-egg rhyton with silver aperture and decorative gold and copper bands around the body. Midea (Argolid), tholos tomb, 15th – 14th cent.

Ostrich egg is included in the imported materials, such as amber (resin from the petrified Baltic pine-forests), semi-precious stones (carnelian, amethyst, rock crystal), ivory and synthetic materials from Egypt or the Syro-palestinian coast (glass paste and faience, the latter made by coating a material of powdered quartz with a vitreous alkaline glaze.).