Painted Pottery Fish
- Medium: Pottery, painted
- Geographical Locations:
- Place made: Egypt
- Possible place collected: Saqqara, Egypt
- Dates: ca. 1390-1336 B.C.E.
- Dynasty: late XVIII Dynasty
- Period: New Kingdom
- Dimensions: 2 1/2 x 4 5/16 in. (6.3 x 11 cm)
- Collections: Egyptian, Classical, and Ancient Middle Eastern Art
- Museum Location:
This item is on view in Egypt Reborn: Art for Eternity, Amarna Period, Martha A. and Robert S. Rubin Gallery, 3rd Floor - Accession Number: 48.111
- Credit Line: Charles Edwin Wilbour Fund
- Image: Overall, 48.111_SL1.jpg. Brooklyn Museum photograph
The fish represented here is the Nile perch (or boltÃ), whose breeding habits attracted the Egyptians' attention. After the female perch lays her eggs, the fish draws them into her mouth, where they stay until they hatch and the young emerge. The Egyptians saw this as a kind of spontaneous generation and thus took the perch as a symbol of resurrection and rebirth. The figure is hollow and contains several clay pellets, representing the eggs. When shaken, the piece served as a rattle, perhaps to soothe a crying baby.
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