Look closely at the substances, surfaces and craft behind ancient objects.
A small piece of flint can be easier to understand when you picture the larger tool it belonged to. The Met’s bifacial sickle insert, object 15.3.797, was a…
The Met’s silver strainer, object 07.228.184, is small enough that its working surface can be overlooked beside more imposing ancient objects. Its lower…
An image of a craftsperson can reveal more than the finished object being made. A depicted bow drill directs attention to the movement of hands, the…
A wooden mallet can offer a different entry into Egyptian collections from a monumental statue. Its catalogue invites attention to a tool’s proportions and…
A tool’s outline can look simple while its catalogue records separate dimensions for the parts. An Egyptian hoe at The Met offers a useful example of…
Follow the Met’s record of a small pair of tweezers through its material description and documented find context without inventing a user.
Explore a Met record of wall tiles from Djoser’s funerary apartments and distinguish the catalogued arrangement from an individual tile.
Read the Met’s kohl tube and applicator record through its separate dimensions and materials, without assuming the small set has one uniform substance.