A container tells one story through its construction and another through what was found inside it. The Met’s basket on a wooden stand, 36.3.59a, b, was part of Hatnefer’s tomb furnishings and is dated approximately 1491–1473 BCE.
Follow the materials
The museum describes a grass basket with coloured elements and a wooden stand attached using linen cord. Read those connections slowly: the support is a separate component joined to the container. That is more specific than describing the whole object simply as a basket.
The record also discusses its condition at discovery and surviving contents. Keep those observations separate from the materials list. They concern the object’s archaeological history rather than only how it was made.
Avoid a single frozen moment
A container can have a history before its final placement. The museum’s discussion is a reminder not to assume that everything about an excavated object represents an untouched scene of daily use.
Make two columns in your note: construction and recorded context. Add questions where the public record leaves a gap. Our illustration is thematic; consult the museum page for the documented object. The distinction between form and context makes the basket interesting without requiring an invented account of the person who last handled it.