Description:

Egypt, Third Intermediate Period to Late Dynastic Period, ca. 1070 to 332 BCE. A tall, thin, alabaster vessel, gently flared at its mouth, with a narrow, flat rim. The vessel feels shockingly light for its size, emphasizing the skill of the carver who made its walls thin enough to allow light to pass through them. Size: 4.75" W x 9.2" H (12.1 cm x 23.4 cm)

Alabaster, which is a form of gypsum or calcite, soft to carve and smooth, was quarried along the length of the Nile, from Giza to just south of Luxor, and the Egyptians made its carved form famous throughout the ancient world. The Greeks made vessels like this out of pottery and painted them white in imitation of the beautiful stone. On this example, as you examine the interior, you can see the grooves left behind from carving and smoothing it into its current form.

Provenance: private Houston, Texas, USA collection; ex-Gerhard Hirsch Nachfolger Auction 277-278, Munich, Germany, lot 590

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#132797

  • Condition: A few small chips from rim and base. Lightly encrusted deposits on surface. Some surface cracks, mainly around the base/lower body, but these do not impact the integrity of the vessel.

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July 19, 2018 7:00 AM MDT
Louisville, CO, US

Artemis Fine Arts

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