Egyptian banded alabaster jar

Old Kingdom, 6th Dynasty circa 2200BC
Height: 29 cm 
 
Collection of 4th Baron Harlech, Shropshire acquired early 20th century and thence by descent
 
Carved from an attractive banded alabaster, the jar with an elongated ovoid body tapering down to a flat circular base, the mouth with flat everted rim.
 
Condition: Complete and repaired, minor section of rim filled
 
Literature: An example of very similar form from the pyramid of Pepi II is drawn in the exhibition catalogue, Dorothea Arnold, Krzysztof Grzymski, Christiane Ziegler, et al, 'Egyptian Art in the Age of the Pyramids', 1999, fig. 75. For the type, see W. M. Flinders Petrie, The Funeral Furniture of Egypt. Stone and Metal Vases, Warminster, 1977, pl. XXVIII, nos.579 and 580.
 
William George Arthur Ormsby-Gore, 4th Baron Harlech KG GCMG PC (1885 – 1964) was a Conservative politician and banker. Deeply interested in the arts, he served as a trustee of both the National Gallery and the Tate and wrote a number of arts related books including 3 volumes in the series 'Guides to the Ancient Monuments of England'.