Bottle

Color: white with purplish area.

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Historical period(s)
Old Kingdom, ca. 2675-2130 BCE
Medium
Bottle; amethyst quartz
Dimensions
H x W: 8 x 7 cm (3 1/8 x 2 3/4 in)
Geography
Egypt
Credit Line
Gift of Charles Lang Freer
Collection
Freer Gallery of Art
Accession Number
F1909.60
On View Location
Currently not on view
Classification(s)
Stone, Vessel
Type

Bottle

Keywords
Egypt, Old Kingdom (ca. 2675 - 2130 BCE)
Provenance

To 1909
Maurice Nahman (1868-1948), Cairo, Egypt, to 1909 [1]

From 1909 to 1919
Charles Lang Freer (1854-1919), purchased from Maurice Nahman in 1909 [2]

From 1920
Freer Gallery of Art, gift of Charles Lang Freer in 1920 [3]

Notes:

[1] See Original Miscellaneous List, S.I. 161, Freer Gallery of Art and Arthur M. Sackler Gallery Archives.

[2] See note 1.

[3] The original deed of Charles Lang Freer's gift was signed in 1906. The collection was received in 1920 upon the completion of the Freer Gallery.

Previous Owner(s) and Custodian(s)

Charles Lang Freer 1854-1919
Maurice Nahman (C.L. Freer source) 1868-1948

Description

Color: white with purplish area.

Label

This small container made of beautifully veined stone would have been a luxury item, most probably filled with an expensive, fragrant oil.  The container would have had a stopper.  Since the base is rounded and does not sit flat, the container would probably have been placed in a box or ring stand to remain upright. 

This type of vessel was made in Egypt from the Old Kingdom onward. To judge by its shape, this particular example probably dates to the Old Kingdom (ca. 2675-2130 B.C.E.).

Published References
  • Joan Crowfoot Payne. An Early Amethyst Vase. vol. 60 London, 1974. .
  • Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, Dr. Pamela Vandiver, Angela J. Milward. Egypt's Golden Age: The Art of Living in the New Kingdom, 1558-1085 B.C. Exh. cat. Boston, February 3, 1982 - January 2, 1983. p. 126.
Collection Area(s)
Ancient Egyptian Art
Web Resources
Google Cultural Institute
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