Vase in the Shape of Mother Monkey with Her Young

Vase in the Shape of Mother Monkey with Her Young

An item at Metropolitan Museum of Art

Inscribed with the name of Merenre I, fourth king of Dynasty 6. This charming composition alludes to motherhood and fertility and also to the exotic lands that provided rare ingredients for the oils and unguents contained in these vases. The contents were presumably believed to have rejuvenating effects. Inscriptions on this and similar vases (1992.338) suggest that the vessels were given by Sixth Dynasty kings to favored courtiers, particularly women, at the time of the king's jubilee.

Egyptian Art

An exhibit at Metropolitan Museum of Art

Vase in the Shape of Mother Monkey with Her YoungVase in the Shape of Mother Monkey with Her YoungVase in the Shape of Mother Monkey with Her YoungVase in the Shape of Mother Monkey with Her YoungVase in the Shape of Mother Monkey with Her Young

The Met collection of ancient Egyptian art consists of approximately 30,000 objects of artistic, historical, and cultural importance, dating from about 300,000 BCE to the 4th century CE. A signifcant percentage of the collection is derived from the Museum's three decades of archaeological work in Egypt, initiated in 1906 in response to increasing interest in the culture of ancient Egypt.