Skip to main content
© Michael C. Carlos Museum, Emory University
ClassificationsAncient Near Eastern Art

Cone for Mosaic Wall Decoration

AAT Object Form/FunctionWall Tile (tile)
AAT Object Form/FunctionDecoration (Process)
Place CreatedUruk, Iraq, Asia
CultureSumerian
PeriodUruk Period
Date4000-3100 BCE
MediumClay
Credit LineCollected by William A. Shelton, funded by John A. Manget
Dimensions4 5/16 x 1 3/16 in. (11 x 3 cm)
Object number1921.149
Label TextThe abundance of mudbrick and the general lack of good timber and stone in Mesopotamia helped shape the development of architectural forms and decoration. During the later fourth millennium, Mesopotamian builders often enriched the walls of temples with tens of thousands of small clay cones. Sometimes dipped in black or red pigment, these cones were inserted side by side in a thick mud plaster to form mosaic-like patterns with geometric designs of zigzags, lozenges, and triangles.
Exhibition HistoryMCCM Permanent Collection Galleries, May 11, 1993 - Spring 2001
MCCM Permanent Collection Reinstallation, September 2001-February 12, 2018
Michael C. Carlos Museum Morgens West Foundation Galleries of Ancient Near Eastern Art, November 10, 2018 - Present
ProvenanceAcquired for Emory University Museum by William Shelton (1875-1959), ca. 1920.
Status
On view
Collections
  • Ancient Egyptian, Nubian, and Near Eastern Art