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Metropolitan Museum of Art — Egyptian Art (Open Access) · tool

Ax or adze

Source of record: Metropolitan Museum of Art — Egyptian Art (Open Access) — catalogued by the holding institution. View the original record →

Description

Ax, adze. Neolithic Period, Buto–Merimda–Maadi, ca. 4500–4000 B.C. Flint. L: 9 cm (3 9/16 in.). From: Merimda Beni Salama, Western Delta, Egypt. Excavation: Vienna Academy of Science excavations 1929–30. Credit: Gift of Albert Rothbart, 1933.

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 single small, roughly worked stone implement shaped like a wedge/edge tool, with no visible hafting or decorative features.

The object is photographed isolated against a neutral background. It appears as a dark brown to reddish-brown flaked stone piece with a pointed/rounded working end and a flatter back. The surface shows irregular flake scars and knapping marks consistent with a chipped lithic tool. There are no carved or incised inscriptions, no hieroglyphic signs, and no cartouches visible. No metal or other composite construction is apparent; only stone is visible. The form resembles a simple adze/axe-like tool silhouette (broad body narrowing to a working edge), which is consistent in general with the catalogue identification as an "Ax or adze," though the photo does not clearly show all diagnostic edges due to the irregular breakage and limited angles.

unclear Neolithic Period (Buto–Merimda–Maadi), as per catalogue (specific style features not confirmable from photo alone) fragmentary
Materials flint (or similar knappable stone)

Connections

Found at Merimda Beni Salama

Cross-references (4)

  • Wikidata-Q Q116415068 tier-1
  • Collection-QID Q160236 tier-2 (wikidata-mediated)
  • Inventory-Number 33.4.32 tier-2 (wikidata-mediated)
  • MET-Object 547161 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.