Egyptian Late Dynastic Alabaster Jar w/ Lug Handles

**Originally Listed At $800**

Egypt, Late Dynastic Period, 26th to 31st Dynasty, ca. 664 to 332 BCE. A nicely-preserved jar with a flat base, an acorn-shaped body with a lightly-rounded shoulder, a thick rim surrounding a deep interior cavity which perhaps at one time held a form-fitting lid, and a pair of pierced lug handles along the midsection. The vessel is hand-carved from beautiful honey-hued alabaster with natural opaque white veining throughout which illuminates when held next to a bright light. The interior cavity was drilled out using a series of progressively finer bits, and evidence of the original drill marks are still visible. This type of vessel would have perhaps held oils and animal fats to be used as moisturizers or other salves to protect against the harsh Egyptian sun. Size: 2.7" W x 2.8" H (6.9 cm x 7.1 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 forms famous throughout the ancient world. A thousand years later, 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 East Coast, USA collection

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#146165
Condition Report: Original lid missing. Repair to one lug handle. Minor nicks and abrasions to rim, body, and base, and light encrustations within interior. Nicely polished exterior surface, and light earthen deposits throughout.