Skip Navigation

Vase of Pepy I

Egyptian, Classical, Ancient Near Eastern Art

MEDIUM Egyptian alabaster (calcite), pigment (Egyptian Blue)
  • Possible Place Made: Saqqara, Egypt
  • DATES ca. 2338–2298 B.C.E.
    DYNASTY Dynasty 6
    PERIOD Old Kingdom
    DIMENSIONS 2 1/8 x diam. 1 1/8 in. (5.4 x 2.8 cm)  (show scale)
    ACCESSION NUMBER 37.61E
    CREDIT LINE Charles Edwin Wilbour Fund
    PROVENANCE Archaeological provenance not yet documented, possibly from Saqqara, Egypt; by 1852, collected in Egypt by Henry Abbott of Cairo, Egypt and New York, NY; 1859, purchased from Henry Abbott by the New-York Historical Society, New York, NY; 1937, loaned by the New-York Historical Society to the Brooklyn Museum; September 1948, purchased from the New-York Historical Society by the Brooklyn Museum.
    Provenance FAQ
    CATALOGUE DESCRIPTION Vase Bearing Title and Name of King Pepy I. Inscription: Vertically written, preceded by "nsw-bity" and followed by "djet ankh." "The King of Upper and Lower Egypt, (title in cartouche), the Son of Hathor, Lady of Dendera, Pepy, who liveth [for]ever." Technique: Exterior wall-polished. Drill marks clear over bottom and sides of interior; lip not regularly formed. Condition: Unbroken. A few slight chips gone from lip. Remains of blue color in the hieroglyphs.
    MUSEUM LOCATION This item is not on view
    CAPTION Vase of Pepy I, ca. 2338–2298 B.C.E. Egyptian alabaster (calcite), pigment (Egyptian Blue), 2 1/8 x diam. 1 1/8 in. (5.4 x 2.8 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Charles Edwin Wilbour Fund, 37.61E. Creative Commons-BY (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, 37.61E_PS6.jpg)
    IMAGE overall, 37.61E_PS6.jpg. Brooklyn Museum photograph, 2011
    "CUR" at the beginning of an image file name means that the image was created by a curatorial staff member. These study images may be digital point-and-shoot photographs, when we don\'t yet have high-quality studio photography, or they may be scans of older negatives, slides, or photographic prints, providing historical documentation of the object.
    RIGHTS STATEMENT 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.
    RECORD COMPLETENESS
    Not every record you will find here is complete. More information is available for some works than for others, and some entries have been updated more recently. Records are frequently reviewed and revised, and we welcome any additional information you might have.