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

Cup

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

Description

Old Kingdom, Dynasty 3, ca. 2649–2100 B.C. Pottery. Height: 7.5 x Diam: 10.9 cm (2 15/16 x 4 5/16 in.). From: Djoser pyramid, near, Saqqara, Memphite Region, Egypt. Excavation: Egyptian Antiquities Service excavations. Credit: Rogers Fund, 1928.

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.

A terracotta pottery cup with flared sides and a simple rim, photographed against a neutral background.

The object appears to be a small, wheel-made pottery cup: it has a narrow, slightly thickened rim and a body that widens outward before meeting a flat or minimally rounded base. The surface is the natural reddish-brown terracotta with scattered small dark specks and chips consistent with age or handling. Near the lower front area there is a small red painted/ink inscription or accession marking reading approximately “28.2.30” (exact digits uncertain due to resolution). No legible hieroglyphs, cartouches, or inscriptions in Egyptian script are visible on the artifact itself. No images of deities or royal figures are present.

daily life Old Kingdom (per catalogue; image itself does not show diagnostic dated features) good
Materials potteryterracotta
Signs Accessory/label marking (approx.) 28.2.30
Visible text "Approx. “28.2.30” (red ink/paint; exact characters unclear)"

Inscriptions (1)

Inscription #1 AI reading of the photograph

Visible text (machine reading)

Approx. “28.2.30” (red ink/paint; exact characters unclear)

Connections

Found at Saqqara
Materials PotteryTerracotta
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.