Palette with Double Bird Head
1 of 6
Object Label
Egyptians rubbed palettes like these with small pebbles to grind green or black pigment for eye paint. These cosmetics accentuated the eyes and protected against sun glare and infection. Eye paint palettes were also thought to provide magical protection, which could be enhanced by giving them animal shapes such as the three examples shown here. The palettes were important possessions that were often buried with their owners.
Caption
Palette with Double Bird Head, ca. 3300–3000 B.C.E.. Graywacke, shell, faience, limestone, garnet, 4 5/8 x 8 7/8 in. (11.8 x 22.5 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Charles Edwin Wilbour Fund, 09.889.161. Creative Commons-BY (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, 09.889.161_SL1.jpg)
Title
Palette with Double Bird Head
Date
ca. 3300–3000 B.C.E.
Period
Predynastic Period, late Naqada II-Naqada III Period
Geography
Reportedly from: Edfu (vicinity), Egypt
Medium
Graywacke, shell, faience, limestone, garnet
Classification
Dimensions
4 5/8 x 8 7/8 in. (11.8 x 22.5 cm)
Credit Line
Charles Edwin Wilbour Fund
Accession Number
09.889.161
Rights
Creative Commons-BY
You may download and use Brooklyn Museum images of this three-dimensional work in accordance with a Creative Commons license. Fair use, as understood under the United States Copyright Act, may also apply. Please include caption information from this page and credit the Brooklyn Museum. If you need a high resolution file, please fill out our online application form (charges apply). For further information about copyright, we recommend resources at the United States Library of Congress, Cornell University, Copyright and Cultural Institutions: Guidelines for U.S. Libraries, Archives, and Museums, and Copyright Watch. For more information about the Museum's rights project, including how rights types are assigned, please see our blog posts on copyright. If you have any information regarding this work and rights to it, please contact copyright@brooklynmuseum.org.
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