White cross-lined ware bowl illustrating a hippo hunt

White cross-lined ware bowl illustrating a hippo hunt

An item at Metropolitan Museum of Art

A hippo hunt is underway on the exterior of this beautifully preserved bowl. The man wears hunting gear, that is, a penis-sheath and an animal’s tail, and holds two cords attached to harpoons now embedded in the face of the large hippo that faces him. A second smaller hippo, behind the first, shares the same fate. For the rest of Egyptian history, hippo hunts were incorporated into certain rituals and myths, most of which revolved around securing the king’s power. Hippopotami are dangerous animals, and the Egyptians knew how easily a lightweight boat could be over turned and the occupants left to face a massive, angry animal. By 3700 B.C., the ancient Egyptians represented the hippo in scenes on ceramic vessels that show the animals being controlled by either humans or the environment.

Egyptian Art

An exhibit at Metropolitan Museum of Art

White cross-lined ware bowl illustrating a hippo huntWhite cross-lined ware bowl illustrating a hippo huntWhite cross-lined ware bowl illustrating a hippo huntWhite cross-lined ware bowl illustrating a hippo huntWhite cross-lined ware bowl illustrating a hippo hunt

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.