ClassificationsAncient Egyptian Art
Fish Bowl
Place CreatedEgypt, Africa
CultureEgyptian
PeriodNew Kingdom
Date1539-1077 BCE
MediumFaience
Credit LineMohamed Farid Khamis/Oriental Weavers Fund
Dimensions1 7/8 x 5 11/16 in. (4.8 x 14.5 cm)
Object number2002.032.001
Label TextThe remarkably well-preserved bowl is of a type that is known primarily from tomb offerings of the New Kingdom; however, a number of shards from such bowls have also been found in shrine contexts suggesting that the bowls were not purely funerary. These vessels are often decorated with representations of the blue lotus or other symbols of rebirth such as the tilapia seen here. When danger approaches, the young tilapia fish hide in the mouth of a parent and emerge again when danger passes. The Egyptians saw this as an example of spontaneous generation, and so the tilapia fish became an important symbol of rebirth. As depicted on these bowls, it also evoked the image of a fish swimming in a pond. In addition to the fish, there are representations of papyrus growing in the background. Papyrus thickets would have lined the banks of the Nile in antiquity and would have had significant symbolic meaning. The Egyptians believed that the created world was born out of a liquid uncreated state called Nun. The marshy areas around the Nile were associated with this state and therefore held the potential for creation.The circles painted along the rim of the bowl refer to the mandrake fruit, which was a potent aphrodisiac and would have further aided in the rebirth of the deceased. The shallow, thin-walled, round-bottomed bowl is of a type characteristic of the Ramesside Period, and similar examples are to be found in many museum collections, although this finely crafted example ranks with the best. The near pristine condition of the bowl indicates that it likely came from a funerary context and therefore the regenerative symbolism would have been particularly apt.
Exhibition HistoryFrom Pharaohs to Emperors: New Egyptian and Classical Antiquities at Emory, Michael C. Carlos Museum, January 14 - April 2, 2006
MCCM Permanent Collection Reinstallation, 2006 - Present
Published ReferencesChristie's New York, Antiquities (4 June 1999), 103, lot 228.
MCCM Newsletter, December 2002 - February 2003.
ProvenanceWith Christie's New York, June 4, 1999, lot 228. Ex private collection, France. Purchased by MCCM from Charles Ede Ltd., London, England.
Status
On viewCollections
- Ancient Egyptian, Nubian, and Near Eastern Art
1980-1760 BCE
1539-1292 BCE
2nd-3rd Century CE
1539-1077 BCE
late 19th-early 20th Century
late 19th-early 20th Century
2435-2152 BCE
late 2nd Century BCE
early-mid 20th Century
800-600 BCE
late 8th-7th Century BCE
2543-2120 BCE
