Girdle with Cowrie Shells
Description
Late Middle Kingdom, Dynasty 12, late–17, ca. 1850–1700 B. C. Electrum over plaster, carnelian, amethyst. L. 66 cm (26 in.); (L. of shells): 2.5 cm (1 in.). From: Tomb MMA 840, pit in portico, Asasif, Upper Egypt, Thebes, Egypt. Excavation: MMA excavations, 1912–13. Credit: Rogers Fund and Edward S. Harkness Gift, 1913.
AI image analysis GPT-5.4-nano
Machine-generated from the object's image on Jul 2026. Not curatorial; treat deities, names, and signs below as the model's best reading, not authority.
The image shows a decorated bead-and-shell girdle comprised of many reddish-brown and purple/dark beads alternating with larger oval and faceted elements in silver-gray tone.
A wide circular/hoop-form assemblage is depicted against a plain light background. It consists of repeating strings of small rounded beads (predominantly reddish-brown) with intermittent purple/dark beads. Larger, elongated oval elements and several larger faceted/flat pieces appear in a metallic silver-gray color, suggesting shell- or metal-like settings. The overall appearance matches a cowrie-shell–type girdle as described in the catalogue, though the photo does not allow clear identification of individual cowrie shells versus other dark/metallic components. No legible hieroglyphs, cartouches, or alphabetic text are visible. No deities are depicted sculpturally; the object is purely a wearable ornament made of beadwork and attached elements.
Cross-references (4)
- Wikidata-Q Q116235421 tier-1
- Collection-QID Q160236 tier-2 (wikidata-mediated)
- Inventory-Number 13.180.11 tier-2 (wikidata-mediated)
- MET-Object 544420 tier-2 (wikidata-mediated)
About this record's data
- From the source institution — accession, description, dimensions, and dating are as catalogued by Metropolitan Museum of Art — Egyptian Art (Open Access).
- AI-inferred — the image-analysis panel (deities, names, signs) is machine-generated and may be wrong.
- Approximate location — most map points are plotted at the site centroid, not the exact findspot.
- Inferred links — cross-references marked with a match method other than explicit-source-field were matched by us, not stated by the source.