Spoon with a falcon on the handle
Predynastic, Naqada III
Not on view
This early example of a toilet spoon (partly reconstructed) has a long handle, rounded for most of its length, and then tapering and flattening toward one end. Vertically through the flattened end is a hole, perhaps for suspension. At the other end is a hemispherical bowl to hold cosmetic material. Facing the bowl is the figure of a falcon that rests its beak on the rim. Although falcons are rarely depicted during this period, this high-soaring bird of prey was already beginning to take on solar connotations. The ivory from which this spoon was carved could be from either a hippopotamus or an elephant tusk.
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