Egypt, Third Intermediate to Late Dynastic Period, 25th to 26th Dynasty, ca. 746 to 525 BCE. A beautiful, mold-formed pottery funerary cone with a tapered body and a flat stamp face. The face bears a series of hieroglyphic symbols in low relief that perhaps provide the name of a deceased individual as well as a condensed prayer of protection for them in the afterlife. Funerary cones, representing the ends of chapel roof support beams, were traditionally inserted in rows (their flat ends facing outward) above the mud brick entrances of the superstructures of non-royal tombs in Thebes. Made of fired Nile mud, cones like these are some of our earliest written records. Most are found in the Theban Necropolis in Upper Egypt and the surrounding area, where the tradition seems to have been particularly strong. Size: 4.6" L x 3.1" W (11.7 cm x 7.9 cm)
This piece has been tested using thermoluminescence (TL) analysis and has been found to be ancient and of the period stated. A full report will accompany purchase.
Provenance: ex-Ashland, Ohio, USA auction; ex-private Ohio, USA collection, acquired before 2000
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#164645
Condition
Original tail end missing as shown. Minor nicks and abrasions to body and hieroglyphs, with light encrustations, and softening to some hieroglyphic symbols. Most hieroglyphs are still visible. TL drill holes on shoulder just below head and along backside.