Bowl Shaped Alabaster Lamp
Bowl Shaped Alabaster Lamp
Egyptian (Giza), ca. 3000 BCE
Old Kingdom, Third Dynasty
carved alabaster
height 3.2 cm
length 14.5 cm
width 11.7 cm
Portland State University Middle East Studies Center
Bogue Lamp Collection, Lamp ID #77, PSU 001
Professor Anne Nicgorski, Willamette University, cited with permission
This lamp is considered the oldest in the collection. It is carved from yellow alabaster, has a long, open nozzle, and a low, open reservoir. Shape: Shallow bowl with flat bottom and broad flat lip; open extended spout at level of rim, squared off at termination. Decoration: None. Inscriptions: None. Condition: Mostly complete; one large chip missing out of side; traces of burning around spout; underside appears unfinished around edges; two prominent white veins running through center of bowl, perpendicular to spout.