Mace head
Unknown Artist
ca. 4500–4000 B.C. (?)
Medium
Stone
Dimensions
Diam. 8.6 × H. 2.3 cm (3 3/8 × 7/8 in.)
Classification
Mace head, disc
Period
Predynastic Period
Department
Egyptian Art
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Rogers Fund, 1907
Accession Number
07.228.64
Art Historical Context
This petite stone mace head, to Egypt's Predynastic Period 4500–4000 B.C., offers a glimpse into the dawn of one of history's greatest civilizations. Crafted from durable stone and measuring just 8.6 cm in diameter and .3 cm high, it was likely designed to be hafted onto a wooden handle, transforming it into a formidable weapon or ceremonial object. Its smooth, disc-like form reflects the early mastery of stone carving by Nile Valley communities, who shaped these tools with simple grinding and polishing techniques using abrasives like sand. In the Predynastic era, before the unification of Up...