Wide-Necked Cosmetic Jar

An item at Metropolitan Museum of Art

This wide-necked jar was excavated by the Museum's Egyptian Expedition in 1916. When found, it contained a glass hairpin and a wooden kohl stick, a cosmetic implement used to apply eye makeup. Although the original contents were not preserved, stone jars such as this one were often used to store cosmetic oils and unguents. The jar had been placed near the head of a coffin along with a number of other objects that came to the Museum including: two other alabaster vessels (16.10.423–.424); one small ointment jar of serpentine (16.10.422); two pottery vessels (16.10.427–.428), a small ivory cosmetic box (16.10.425), and three ivory combs (16.10.428–.430).

Egyptian Art

An exhibit at Metropolitan Museum of Art

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.

Metropolitan Museum of Art