AN EGYPTIAN ALABASTER POT NEW KINGDOM, DYNASTY XVIII, 1550-1307 B.C.

拍品描述

AN EGYPTIAN ALABASTER POT, NEW KINGDOM, DYNASTY XVIII, 1550-1307 B.C. Of globular form, the compressed spherical body rising from a rounded base to a short constricted neck and a plain, slightly irregular rim. The vessel is carved from a single block of banded calcite-alabaster, the stone displaying warm honey and cream tonalities with faint horizontal striations visible through the translucent surface. The exterior retains traces of the original faceting from the carver's tool, softened by wear, while the interior is hollowed to follow the profile of the exterior wall. Minor chips and losses to the rim, with light earthen encrustation gathered around the mouth and lower body. The form belongs to the tradition of small hardstone containers produced in Egypt for the storage of unguents, cosmetic pigments, and scented oils. Vessels of this compressed spherical type, sometimes described as pyxides or ointment jars, were among the standard forms of the New Kingdom cosmetic repertoire, kept in domestic contexts during life and deposited among the funerary equipment at death. Their small capacity indicates that they held substances used sparingly, most likely perfumed fats, kohl, or medicinal preparations rather than bulk commodities. Calcite-alabaster, quarried principally at Hatnub in Middle Egypt, was among the most prestigious of the soft stones worked by Egyptian craftsmen. Its translucency, its associations with purity and light, and the labour required to hollow it by tubular drill and abrasive made it a material reserved for temple furnishings, royal tomb equipment, and the finer grades of domestic luxury. Vessels in calcite appear in quantity in the tombs of the Eighteenth Dynasty elite, and the substance was closely associated with the offering cults of the deceased, in which perfumed oils and unguents were among the ritual necessities for regeneration in the afterlife. This pot exemplifies the quiet refinement of New Kingdom stoneworking, in which the value of the object lies not in applied decoration but in the pure profile of the form and the intrinsic beauty of the material. It belongs to a class of intimate personal possessions that crossed the threshold between daily use and funerary provision, and whose survival in numbers testifies to the central place of cosmetic ritual in Egyptian life. Dimensions: Diameter: 3.5cm; Height: 3cm

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