Cosmetic palette from prehistoric Egypt
Hunters Palette |
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![](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f3/HuntersPalette-BritishMuseum-August21-08.jpg/320px-HuntersPalette-BritishMuseum-August21-08.jpg) Hunters Palette with pieces connected |
Material | Schist |
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Size | c. 66 cm x 26 cm |
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Created | 31st century BC (circa) |
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Present location | British Museum, Louvre |
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Identification | British Museum, EA 20790, EA 20792, Louvre E 11254 |
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The Hunters Palette or Lion Hunt Palette is a c. 3100 BCE cosmetic palette from the Naqada III period of late prehistoric Egypt. The palette is broken: part is held by the British Museum and part is in the collection of the Louvre.
Content
The Hunters Palette shows a complex iconography of lion hunting as well as the hunt of other animals such as birds, desert hares, and gazelle types; one gazelle is being contained by a rope. The weapons used in the twenty-man hunt are the bow and arrow, mace, throwing sticks, flint knives, and spears. Two iconographic conjoined bull-forefronts adorn the upper right alongside a hieroglyphic-like symbol similar to the "shrine" hieroglyph, sḥ.