Blue-painted Water Jar
1 of 6
Object Label
Blue painted decoration on large vessels became fashionable during the reign of Amenhotep III (circa 1390–1352 B.C.E.). The blue pigment was likely produced with cobalt, a mineral originating in the western oasis, located about 150 miles from the Nile Valley and accessible to the Egyptians since the Old Kingdom.
Caption
Blue-painted Water Jar, ca. 1352–1332 B.C.E.. Clay, pigment, 25 1/16 x Diam. 12 5/8 in. (63.7 x 32 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Gift of the Egypt Exploration Society, 25.858. Creative Commons-BY (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, CUR.25.858_NegA_print_bw.jpg)
Gallery
Not on view
Gallery
Not on view
Title
Blue-painted Water Jar
Date
ca. 1352–1332 B.C.E.
Dynasty
Dynasty 18
Period
New Kingdom, Amarna Period
Geography
Place excavated: Tell el-Amarna, Egypt
Medium
Clay, pigment
Classification
Dimensions
25 1/16 x Diam. 12 5/8 in. (63.7 x 32 cm)
Credit Line
Gift of the Egypt Exploration Society
Accession Number
25.858
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.
Frequent Art Questions
How did these vessels with pointed bottoms stay upright in ancient Egypt?
We get that question often. Vessels like this one may have stood in specially designed racks with openings to hold those pointed bottoms. They also may have been placed in holes dug into earth floors, or simply have been leaned against walls.You'll notice the color blue on many objects in this gallery. For the ancient Egyptians, blue symbolized water, necessary for all forms of life, and especially crucial in a desert climate!
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