Decorated jar fragment with label
Unknown Artist
ca. 1390–1352 B.C.
Medium
Pottery and ink, paint
Dimensions
H. 11.4 cm (4 1/2 in.); W. 8.8 cm (3 7/16 in.)
Classification
jar label, Malqata
Period
New Kingdom
Department
Egyptian Art
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Rogers Fund, 1917
Accession Number
17.10.1141
Art Historical Context
This delicate fragment from a decorated jar, dating to around 1390–1352 B.C. during Egypt's New Kingdom (Dyn 18), offers a glimpse into the bustling administrative world of ancient Thebes. Crafted from pottery and adorned with ink and paint, measures just 11. cm high and 8.8 cm wide, yet it preserves a practical "label" likely indicating the jar's contents—perhaps oil, grain, or wine. Such vessels were essential for storing goods in royal households, temples, and estates, reflecting the era's sophisticated bureaucracy under pharaohs like Amenhotep III. The New Kingdom marked Egypt's imperial ...