This deep stemless cup would have been used for drinking wine. This type of drinking cup with two handles near the rim is also known as aglaux,the Greek word for owl, because of its decoration of an owl between olive branches.
The olive branch appears in the myths about early Athens. Athena won a contest with the god Poseidon about who could provide the best gift to the city. Poseidon brought a spring of salt water to the Acropolis, but Athena brought civilisation by gifting to the city what became its staple crop, the olive.
