Horse-shaped Horn Cup

The concept of horn cups comes from steppe herding communities, who used the actual horns of cattle or sheep as vessels for drinking alcohol and other liquids. Cups made from actual horns are rarely preserved, but horn-shaped cups made from gold, silver, jade, clay, and other materials have been found by archaeologists. Horn cups come in a variety of shapes and styles, from simple unadorned horns to horns with the tip carved into the head or body of an animal. The latter type were popular during the first millennium BCE, and have been found in great numbers in West Asia, the Mediterranean region, and the coastal regions of the Black Sea.
Horn cups first came to be used in the Korean Peninsula during the Three Kingdoms period. They are usually found in areas around Gyeongju, although some have been found in the Gaya region. This particular horn cup is decorated with the head of a horse, resembling cups that were widely used in West Asia.