3. Black-Mouthed Jar

This bichrome jar is a typical example of B-Ware pottery of early Egypt. To produce the two-color effect, a pot would be fired with the mouth down partially covered in ash. A black oxide was deposited on the top part, while the rest turned into bright red due to exposure to oxygen. A similar aesthetic was used on A-Group pottery (e.g. no. 2) and pre-Kerma pottery. The direct ancestor of Egyptian B-Ware is the Badarian pottery of Upper Egypt (4400-3800 BCE). However, bichrome wares are first known from the Western Nubian Desert as early as 7500-6200 BCE. For example they are found at Nabta Playa, about 100 mi west of Abu Simbel, a site also connected to early cattle-related cultic practices and megalithic monuments.