Baron Edouard Jean Empain (1852-1929), France. Collection of Baron Edouard Jean Empain; Antiquities, Christie's, London, 14 April 2011, lot 10.
Intact. With hairline cracks on the exterior and interior and along the spout. Minor surface wear, chips and abrasions throughout.
The 6th Dynasty of Egypt marked a period of creativity in the production of stone vessels. A variety of new, more complex shapes came into vogue including the finely modeled short spout as seen on the present example.
See D. Arnold and E Pischikova, "Stone Vessels: Luxury Items with Manifold Implications" in J.P. O'Neill, ed., Egyptian Art in the Age of the Pyramids, pp. 121-123.
