Egyptian Old Kingdom faience tile from the Step Pyramid

E65

£300.00

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A blue glazed faience tile of curved moulded form with part of a pierced attachment protrusion on the back. Around 36,000 faience tiles such as this were produced to decorate the internal walls and chambers of King Djoser’s Step Pyramid at Saqqara. The uniformly-placed hole at the back of the tiles was used to line them up in a pattern prior to being inserted into a plaster matrix on a wall.
These tiles were manufactured in a standardised rectangular form and sometimes cut to shape in order to fit a particular pattern or architectural feature, as was the case with this example.

Culture
Egypt, Old Kingdom, 3rd Dynasty, reign of Djoser, c. 2630-2611 BC, probably from the Step Pyramid at Saqqara or a closely associated structure

Condition
Surface chipping, three sides of the tile have been cut in antiquity to fit a pattern and the suspension attachment on the rear was also intentionally removed

Size
5.4 x 3.2 cms

Provenance
Ex. private collection, London, UK; acquired on the London art market in the early 2000’s.
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For other examples and further reading please see:
<br
https://www.bmimages.com/preview.asp?image=00030974001
or
https://www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/543904

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