Advanced Search 
Wavy-handled jar with spatter decoration
Egyptian
Predynastic Period
Naqada II, 3650–3300 B.C.
Findspot: Egypt, Mesaid, Tomb 109
Medium/Technique
Pottery: Marl clay
Dimensions
Height x diameter: 12.7 x 12.7 cm (5 x 5 in.)
Credit Line
Harvard University—Boston Museum of Fine Arts Expedition
Accession Number11.313
CollectionsAncient Egypt, Nubia and the Near East
ClassificationsVessels
DescriptionAs the Predynastic Period progressed, a new style of pottery emerged, made of hard, buff-colored desert clay and decorated with reddish brown paint. The spatter pattern on the jar seen here imitates the mottling of a hard stone such as diorite. The shape of this jar was widely popular, featuring a tall, ovoid body and characteristic wavy, horizontal ledge handles. Wavy-handled jars continued to be produced in both stone and pottery well into the Early Dynastic Period, but they gradually lost their shouldered or ovoid shape, developing into the elegant cylindrical jars of Dynasties 1 and 2.
ProvenanceFrom Mesaid (Mesa'eed) tomb 109 [M/109]. 1910: excavated by the Harvard University-Museum of Fine Arts Expedition; assigned to the MFA by the government of Egypt.
(Accession Date: March 2, 1911)
(Accession Date: March 2, 1911)