Kosmetikkästchen

Description

Originally made as a receptacle for toiletries, this small masterwork is a beautiful example of a splendidly-designed commodity from the property of the upper class.

The casket’s outside as well as the upper side of the lid bear carved decoration, of which a central pictorial field is framed by several strips of stylised petals. The depiction on the lid shows a calf in full gallop that turns its head. It is attacked by a lion depicted below. Before the lion and above the backs of both animals the empty fields are filled with floral motifs. The casket shows a comparable scene: the calf is attacked by a panther that sinks its teeth into the neck of the young animal. From the other side a whippet snaps at one of the calf’s hind legs. Depictions of animals struggling for survival, in particular in the desert, were a popular Egyptian motif since the Old Kingdom. For the full gallop of the animals, which can also oftentimes be found in the mural and floor decoration of Amarna, Mycenaean influence has been suggested.

This type of casket is limited to the relatively short period between the late eighteenth to the early nineteenth dynasty. The half-cylindrical container is divided inside into four compartments; it can be closed by a long rectangular sliding lid, which could be fixed in place by a pin (lost today). In comparable pieces, remains of wax and oil were found.