By the Eighteenth and Nineteenth Dynasties (1550 BC – 1189 BC), the Egyptian Empire stretched from Syria in the north to Nubia in the south, one of the largest empires yet known. But despite this excess of land, Egypt itself was unbearably cramped. Ninety percent of the population lived in less than one percent of the land area. This was the Nile Valley, the thin strip of lush vegetation which bisects the two main Egyptian deserts – the Western or Libyan Desert (the eastern edge of the Sahara) and the Eastern Desert, which occupies the space between the river and the Red Sea. Along with the tiny desert oases, the river was the only source of fresh water for the Kingdom, and was the only place in Egypt where fertile land could be found. The ideal Egyptian settlement sat on the fringes of the desert, just where the sands give way to the fertile river banks; close enough to benefit from the life-giving waters, but far enough away not to encroach on the valuable farmland. Yet the boundary between desert and riverbank was not a healthy environment. The waters and vegetation brought with them insects, and the desert winds were impregnated with sand and grit. As a result, ophthalmological complaints were common among the Egyptians – so much so, that entire papyrus treatises were written about them. While there were vrious imaginative cures for eye complaints, most Egyptians put their faith in a preventative. Kohl, a compound of lead or antimony sulphide, was ground into a paste, and used to outline the eyes. The dark black outlines – which are a characteristic of Egyptian art – were thought to prevent insects from entering the eye, and to protect both from grit and sand, and also from the harsh rays of the sun. But, given that both lead and antimony are toxic, it is possible that kohl caused more problems than it solved.

The importance of kohl in Egyptian culture was such that accoutrements for the preparation, application and storage of kohl are considered one of the most important classes of Egyptian archaeological finds. Decorated palettes, upon which kohl was ground and then mixed with water, are the earliest masterpieces of Egyptian art: particularly notable are the Two Dogs (Ashmolean Museum AN1896-1908 E.3924) and Narmer (Egyptian Museum, Cairo CG 14716) Palettes. Over time, the trend moved from palettes towards pre-made kohl paste stored in jars. Kohl jars followed particular types, first systematically set out by the legendary archaeologist William Matther Flinders Petrie (Petrie, W. M. F. (1937) The Funeral Furniture of Egypt, with Stone and Metal Vases. London.). While they were based on the classical Egyptian form of the carinated vase inspired by the opening of the lotus-bud, they soon developed a form of their own: squatter, rounder, with more dramatic shoulders, and a shorter more everted neck with a disc-shaped rim. The collar where the shoulder meets the neck tends to be exceptionally thin. Beyond this classical form, however, imaginative and often eccentric shapes could also be adopted, including hedgehogs (British Museum EA58323) or the deity Bes (Akademisches Kunstmuseum, Bonn 1897, World Museum, Liverpool M11003).

This kohl jar follows a less exaggerated version of the classical form. It is made from a single block of alabaster, geologically-speaking, banded travertine. The vessel rises from a small rounded foot, through an elegant pyriform body. The vessel is not entirely hollowed out, but rather a small well has been drilled into the centre to hold the kohl. It is possible that the thick walls were designed to insulate the contents from the variable temperatures outside. The shoulder is altogether more gentle, and the V-shaped neck taller, than in the squatter versions of kohl vases; this form is closer to the kinds of carinated ointment vases from which the shape was inspired. This may lead one to indicate an early date, and this particular shape (Petrie, W. M. F. (1937) The Funeral Furniture of Egypt, with Stone and Metal Vases. London. No. 722) was originally dated to the Eleventh and Twelfth Dynasties (2150 BC – 1802 BC), around when kohl jars first appear in the funeral assemblage. However, on the basis of the form, this vessel more likely dates to the latter period.

References: examples of the same shape can be found in London (British Museum EA63302; Petrie Museum of Egyptian Archaeology UC38853, UC2391, UC2392, UC13269, UC18808, UC27593), Liverpool (World Museum 16.11.06.223), Boston (Museum of Fine Arts 86.202), New York (Brooklyn Museum 13.1031), and in numerous other collections worldwide. The shape conforms to Petrie, W. M. F. (1937) The Funeral Furniture of Egypt, with Stone and Metal Vases. London. No. 722.