Ointment Jar
Artist
Unknown
Datecirca 1550–1295 BCE
MediumTravertine
DimensionsH. 4 3/4 x Diam. 3 1/4 in; Inner rim diam. 1 1/16 in. (12.1 x 8.3 x 2.7 cm)
ClassificationsNatural Substances
Credit LineGift of the James G. Hanes Memorial Fund
Object numberG.73.8.8
On View
On viewThe ancient Egyptians used natural oils and fats, mixed with lime or natron (a carbonate salt), as moisturizers and cleansers. They also mixed aromatic resins, flowers, and spices with these oils and fats to create scented ointments for cosmetics or medicinal remedies. These products were often stored in small vessels such as this footed ointment jar.ProvenanceBrought back from Egypt (exact location undetermined) by archaeologist Prof. John Garstang, University of Liverpool, possibly between 1897-1904; Lord Rea, Liverpool (dates unknown); Mathias Komor Fine Arts & Antiquities, New York, NY; sold to NCMA, 1973.
Published References"Recent Acquisitions" (exhibition catalogue), North Carolina Museum of Art Bulletin 12, no. 3 (March 1974), cat. no. 26.
Caroline M. Rocheleau, Ancient Egyptian Art [Systematic Catalogue of the Collection] (Raleigh, NC: North Carolina Museum of Art, 2012), cat. no. 13, illus. (color) 34.
Exhibition HistoryRaleigh, NC, North Carolina Museum of Art, “Recent Acquisitions,” June 16-August 18, 1974.
Raleigh, NC, North Carolina Museum of Art, Egyptian Gallery, April 22, 1974-February 13, 1978.
Raleigh, NC, North Carolina Museum of Art, "The People's Collection, Reimagined," October 7, 2022–present. Object Rights Statement
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