Ode on an Egyptian vase
An unusual vase featuring three warriors in military uniform has been restored a decade after its discovery reports Nevine El-Aref.
Egyptian vase
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When a huge pile of fragments of what appeared to be a broken glazed vessel was found in Asmant Al- Kharab in Dakhla Oasis in the eastern desert years ago, the pieces were collected with care and stored. Perhaps not too much attention was given to it at first. But then a Canadian team from the Royal Ontario Museum took an interest in the fragments and painstakingly began restoring the vessel. Were all the pieces there and could they even then be reconstructed into the vessel's original form? The group tackled the project enthusiastically, as a jig- saw puzzle, first sorting the fragments into colour combinations and decorative elements. Slowly patterns matched up and gave a hint of shape. It appeared that the vessel had a slender neck and was beautifully ornate.
Throughout Egyptian history potters have used a wide range of decorative techniques and motifs. Each period would have its own favoured style. Even in prehistory there were distinctive pottery styles and decorative techniques, making it possible for scholars to accurately date particular pieces. However, painted decoration on pottery was not common in Pharaonic times until the reign of Amenhotep III, when blue pigment was used to make flower garlands around large vessels -- they were not, however, glazed. "This beautiful vessel proved to be typical of those fabricated in Alexandria during the fourth century [AD]; the method of glaze and sophisticated shape were the clues," Culture Minister Farouk Hosni said.
Time and patience eventually revealed what Zahi Hawass, secretary general of the Supreme Council of Antiquities (SCA), described as "a very beautiful and distinguished piece of art".
The now completely restored 17 centimetre vase of a slender neck and flaring shape is decorated with three warriors adorned in formal military uniform and two other men in white linen robes of the type worn by priests. The scene is framed with yellow, pink, and green plants as well as geometrical designs.
