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Rectangular mortar

3rd millennium BCE
Not on view
Restituted
This artwork was restituted in September 2023. It is no longer in the museum’s collection.
On loan to The Met
This work of art is currently on loan to the museum.
This smoothly worked rectangular mortar has a raised edge around all four sides. Mortars were used for grinding many different substances, food as well as pigments and incense. The visually attractive material of this example, with its contrasting bands of color, suggests it was used for special materials rather than everyday food preparation. It has been proposed that a female figure (L.2023.22.1) associated with this mortar may have functioned as a pestle for it.

Artwork Details

Object Information
  • Title: Rectangular mortar
  • Period: Bronze Age
  • Date: 3rd millennium BCE
  • Geography: Southwestern Arabia, present-day Yemen
  • Medium: Veined marble
  • Dimensions: 1.61 x 6.26 x 8.39 in. (4.09 x 15.9 x 21.31 cm), 4.03 lbs
  • Credit Line: On loan from the Republic of Yemen
  • Object Number: L.2023.22.2
  • Curatorial Department: Ancient West Asian Art

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