Mirror with Handle in the Form of a Hathor Emblem

Mirror with Handle in the Form of a Hathor Emblem

An item at Metropolitan Museum of Art

The handle of this mirror was originally made of wood (now restored) covered with gold foil. The woman's face with cow's ears represents the goddess Bat and is also an emblem of the goddess Hathor. The use of gold and silver, rather than wood and bronze, identifies this as the possession of a member of the elite, in this case one of three foreign wives of Thutmose III. The king's cartouche is inscribed above the face.

Egyptian Art

An exhibit at Metropolitan Museum of Art

Mirror with Handle in the Form of a Hathor EmblemMirror with Handle in the Form of a Hathor EmblemMirror with Handle in the Form of a Hathor EmblemMirror with Handle in the Form of a Hathor EmblemMirror with Handle in the Form of a Hathor Emblem

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.