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Source Description
Stone palettes were used for grinding eye paint worn for cosmetic purposes and to protect against sun glare and eye infections. There were two types: green, made from malachite (copper ore), and black, made from galena (lead ore). As funerary items, these ores may have had a deep significance for the deceased as symbols of regeneration and rebirth: the rich soil of the banks of the Nile (black), and the lush vegetation it sustained (green).
Scholar Source Context
Document identity
localId
154738
label
Palette in the Form of a Fish
core
obj
dtoType
object
pageCount
1
Source metadata
id
154738
contentType
object
title
Palette in the Form of a Fish
description
Stone palettes were used for grinding eye paint worn for cosmetic purposes and to protect against sun glare and eye infections. There were two types: green, made from malachite (copper ore), and black, made from galena (lead ore). As funerary items, these ores may have had a deep significance for the deceased as symbols of regeneration and rebirth: the rich soil of the banks of the Nile (black), and the lush vegetation it sustained (green).
date
c. 3500–2950 BCE
citation
rights
CC0
rightsUri
CC0
language
en
wikidata
Q60755668
genreSpecific
Tools and Equipment
imageCount
1
source
import
dimensionsRaw
Overall: 10.5 cm (4 1/8 in.)
cul
Egypt, Predynastic (5000–2950 BCE), Naqada II–III (3650–3000 BCE)
accession
1989.32
Source extras
tec
graywacke
tombstone
Palette in the Form of a Fish, c. 3500–2950 BCE. Egypt, Predynastic (5000–2950 BCE), Naqada II–III (3650–3000 BCE). Graywacke; overall: 10.5 cm (4 1/8 in.). The Cleveland Museum of Art, Bequest of Elizabeth M. Skala, 1989.32
collection
Egypt - Predynastic
didYouKnow
This fish shape is one of the most common for Egyptian cosmetic palettes.
citations
citation
E. H. T. “The Year in Review: Selections 1989.” <em>The Bulletin of the Cleveland Museum of Art</em> 77, no. 2 (February 1990): 38–78.
page_number
Reproduced: p. 52; Mentioned: p. 66, no. 7
citation
The Cleveland Museum of Art. <em>Handbook of the Cleveland Museum of Art</em>. Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1991.
page_number
Reproduced: p. 2
citation
Berman, Lawrence M., and Kenneth J. Bohač.<em> Catalogue of Egyptian Art: The Cleveland Museum of Art.</em> Cleveland, OH: Cleveland Museum of Art, 1999
page_number
Mentioned: p. 115-116; Reproduced: p. 115, color p. 42
creditline
Bequest of Elizabeth M. Skala
updatedAt
2026-05-29 08:00:51.114000
sourceId
154738
dept
Egyptian and Ancient Near Eastern Art
coll
Egypt - Predynastic
med
graywacke
thumbnail_url
image_url
Single page context
seq
1
pageIndex
0
type
photo
mediaId
96126da7eace06cd