Ostrakon

Art Historical Context

This delicate ostrakon, a small pottery shard inscribed with ink, offers a glimpse into everyday life in Coptic Egypt during the late 6th to early 7th century (580–640 CE). Measuring just over 2 inches square, it exemplifies the resourceful use of broken ceramics as an affordable writing surface in a time before widespread paper. Housed in the Metropolitan Museum of Art's Medieval department, this artifact from the Rogers Fund of 1914 highlights the Coptic culture—a vibrant Christian tradition in post-pharaonic Egypt blending Greco-Roman, Egyptian, and early Byzantine influences. Ostraca like...