Mistakes happen—and when it comes to ancient pottery, we embrace them. Slips, smudges, and other things-gone-wrong reveal a great deal about production and process. Decorating pottery is dirty work, as anyone who has tried shaping or painting a terracotta vase will know. When dealing with a large or awkwardly proportioned shape, there’s also the challenge of how best to keep hold of the vessel while painting it. On this fragmentary drinking cup, the sequence of short red and black stripes near the base shows a clear smudge—look closely and you can see the painter’s fingerprint. Want to see more ancient oopsies? Tells us in the comments. . . . . . 🏷: #ancientoopsies #ancient #art #gettyvilla #hiddenhistory #storiesbehindtheart #pottery #potters