This impasto stand (holmos), originally took the form of a tripartite structure. However, it has lost its upper, cup-shaped section, which was designed to receive the olla, a vessel used for holding wine. What remains is the bulbous central portion and the large, bell-shaped foot. The piece is a characteristic example of Capena’s Orientalising production, marked by a clear predilection for the depiction of fantastical, often composite, creatures. These are rendered in exquisitely refined incised decoration. The globular section bears motifs of buds and palmettes, while the foot is adorned with three fantastic horse-like creatures. The extravagant character of these figures, with their mannerist silhouettes, is heightened by the presence of wing-like elements grafted onto their bodies, as well as by the addition, for one of them, of an animal head at the end of its tail. This type of ceramic was a central element in aristocratic banqueting events involving ritualised wine drinking, typical of the Orientalising period. These would be used as funerary equipment to signify the status of the deceased. Minor dents and scratches. Some cracks at the base.