Artwork Page for Alabastron (stopper)

Details / Information for Alabastron (stopper)

Alabastron (stopper)

305–222 BCE

Egypt, Greco-Roman period (332 BCE–395 CE), Ptolemaic dynasty

(305–30 BCE)
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Medium
travertine
Measurements
Diameter: 3.3 cm (1 5/16 in.); Overall: 22.9 cm (9 in.); Stopper: 4.5 cm (1 3/4 in.); Body: 19.1 x 2.5 cm (7 1/2 x 1 in.)
Credit Line
John L. Severance Fund 1995.262.b
Public Domain
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Location
107 Egyptian
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Did You Know?

This is the lid to a perfume holder which might have been attached to a string, making it easily portable.

Description

Both ancient Egyptian men and women loved cosmetics. Unguents, oils, and perfumes made from aromatic plant resins and gums were obtained at great cost from distant lands. The objects identified with cosmetics were given lavish treatment.
A pale, translucent beige travertine stopper features a circular disk joined to a cylindrical stem that widens into a bulbous end. The smooth, polished surface is marked by faint horizontal banding. Lying horizontally with the disk angled to the right, a small indentation is visible at the center of the flat top.

Alabastron (stopper)

305–222 BCE

Egypt, Greco-Roman period (332 BCE–395 CE), Ptolemaic dynasty (305–30 BCE)

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