Vessel with a face

Vessel with a face

The manufacture of stone vessels was a major activity during the Predynastic and Protodynastic Periods. The first stage was to rough out from a block of stone the approximate shape of the intended vessel. The interior was then bored out with the aid of a flint drill, and the exterior was carefully smoothed and polished. The Brussels vessel is distinctive by having two eyes and a nose, representing a human face, and by a conical foot. Examples of this type are rare and all come from tombs. As well as the practical purpose of containing provisions, these vessels also had the function of protecting the deceased in the Hereafter.

Present location KMKG - MRAH [07/003] BRUSSELS

Inventory number E.2326

Dating NAQADA I

Archaeological Site UNKNOWN

Category VASE

Material BASALT

Technique HEWN; POLISHED; UNSPECIFIED STONE-TECHNIQUE; INLAY

Height 31.7 cm

Width 10.9 cm

Bibliography•F. Lefebvre et B. Van Rinsveld, L'Égypte. Des Pharaons aux Coptes, Bruxelles 1990, 16

•S. Hendrickx, Prehistorische en vroegdynastische oudheden uit Egypte - Antiquités préhistoriques et protodynastiques d'Égypte, Bruxelles 1994, 24-25

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Relief of a walking lion

This high relief features a lion, striding to the right. The piece is framed at the top and both sides with a small border and at the bottom with a broad ledge. Only the head and right front paw are executed in some detail; the body is rendered quite superficially. The relief may have been left unfinished. Probably, the lion represents the god Miysis, corroborated by the provenance (Tell el-Moqdam/Leontopolis).
The relief is either a sculptor's model or a votive offering.

Present location	ALLARD PIERSON MUSEUM [06/002] AMSTERDAM
Inventory number	APM 7792
Dating	PTOLEMAIC PERIOD
Archaeological Site	TELL EL-MUQDAM
Category	RELIEF
Material	LIMESTONE
Technique	HIGH RELIEF
Height	15.5 cm
Width	25 cm
Depth	2.7 cm

Bibliography

• G.A.S. Snijder (ed.), Algemeene gids Allard Pierson Museum Amsterdam, 1956 (tweede druk), 9 (nr. 40)
• R.A. Lunsingh Scheurleer (ed.), Egypte, eender en anders (tentoonstellingscatalogus), 1984, 30 (nr. 34)
• W.M. van Haarlem (ed.), CAA Allard Pierson Museum Amsterdam, Fasc. III, 1995, 60-61

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Mammisi-Dendera