Tickets
English
DonateMembershipTickets

Cosmetic Spoon

Second Intermediate Period–New Kingdom
ca. 1580–1500 BCE
On view at The Met Fifth Avenue in Gallery 130
The bowl of this wooden cosmetic spoon is carved in the form of an outstretched hand holding a unionid (a freshwater Nile mollusk). At the opposite end of the long handle is a waterfowl with its head bent backward. This bird is often identified as a duck, but the long neck suggests that it might instead be a goose, associated in other examples with the earth god Geb. The spiral handle here is unusual, as most such shafts are smooth.

Once thought to be simple toilet items, "cosmetic spoons" are now thought to be ritual items rich with iconography connecting them to fertility and rites of renewal.

Artwork Details

Object Information
  • Title: Cosmetic Spoon
  • Period: Second Intermediate Period–New Kingdom
  • Dynasty: Dynasty 17–18
  • Date: ca. 1580–1500 BCE
  • Geography: From Egypt, Upper Egypt, Thebes, Deir el-Bahri, Hatshepsut Hole, Senenmut Quarry, MMA excavations, 1926–27
  • Medium: Wood
  • Dimensions: L. 20.7 cm (8 1/8 in.)
  • Credit Line: Rogers Fund, 1927
  • Object Number: 27.3.614
  • Curatorial Department: Egyptian Art

More Artwork

More Artwork
A slider containing 5 items.
Press the down key to skip to the last item.
Scepter case (?), Wood
Scepter case (?)
ca. 1981–1802 B.C.
Cosmetic Spoon in the Shape of Swimming Woman Holding a Dish, Travertine (Egyptian alabaster), steatite
Cosmetic Spoon in the Shape of Swimming Woman Holding a Dish
ca. 1386–1347 BCE
Arched Harp (shoulder harp), Wood
Arched Harp (shoulder harp)
ca. 1386–1300 BCE
Bow, Wood
Bow
ca. 2120–1981 B.C.
Glass ligula (ear pick), Glass, Roman
Glass ligula (ear pick)
Roman
1st century CE or later

Research Resources

The Met provides unparalleled resources for research and welcomes an international community of students and scholars. The Met's Open Access API is where creators and researchers can connect to the The Met collection. Open Access data and public domain images are available for unrestricted commercial and noncommercial use without permission or fee.

To request images under copyright and other restrictions, please use this Image Request form.

Feedback

We continue to research and examine historical and cultural context for objects in The Met collection. If you have comments or questions about this object record, please contact us using the form below. The Museum looks forward to receiving your comments.

Send feedback

Content Notice

The Metropolitan Museum of Art presents over 5,000 years of art from around the world, and our online collection reflects ongoing work conducted over the course of our more than 150-year history. You may encounter objects or images that may be inappropriate for some viewers or information that may be outdated.