EXPLORE THROUGH OBJECTS

Finds

From an inscription to a ceramic vessel: reading routes that begin with an object and ask how it becomes evidence.

Pottery, inscriptions, coins and weapons pose different questions. Start with a find category, continue to a method guide and compare a case study. Material and function are different categories: a ceramic vessel can bear writing, while stone can serve several kinds of tool.

In this section

Pale terracotta amphora with two handles, a pointed base and painted Phoenician writing on its upper body — Cypriot amphora with a painted Phoenician inscription, sixth-fifth century BCE. A comparison for writing on vessels; not the Jerusalem inscription. The Met, 74.51.2300.The Metropolitan Museum of Art · 74.51.2300 · The Cesnola Collection, Purchased by subscription, 1874-76 · CC0 · Source · CC0 1.0

KINDS OF FINDS

Inscriptions: read the text as an object

Words are only part of the evidence. Writing surface, preservation and find context belong to the same reading question.

A complete Canaanite pottery jar with two handles and a short neck, photographed against a grey background — Canaanite jar from the Levant, ca. 1500-1400 BCE. The Met, 2001.761.9; the collection record does not state an exact findspot.The Metropolitan Museum of Art · 2001.761.9 · Gift of Bess Myerson, 2001 · CC0 · Source · CC0 1.0

KINDS OF FINDS

Pottery: beyond the silhouette

Read a sherd as part of an assemblage, and ask why a similar shape is only the beginning of identification.

Gold daric showing an Achaemenid king holding a bow and spear — Achaemenid gold daric with a king, ca. fourth century BCE; Iran in the catalogue. Shown for comparison, not a coin from the hoard in our article. The Met, 52.127.1.The Metropolitan Museum of Art · 52.127.1 · Gift of Edmund Kerper, 1952 · CC0 · Source · CC0 1.0

READING OBJECTS

Coins: minting, use and deposition

Start with documented identification and continue into context: a route to the coin guide and the Persian and Roman periods.

Long bronze spearhead with a leaf-shaped blade, central ridge and hollow shaft socket — Bronze spearhead from Cyprus, ca. 1200-1100 BCE; 35.4 cm long. A weapon shown for comparison, not the Newe Yam sword. The Met, 74.51.5309.The Metropolitan Museum of Art · 74.51.5309 · The Cesnola Collection, Purchased by subscription, 1874-76 · CC0 · Source · CC0 1.0

READING OBJECTS

Weapons: form, use and context

Slingstones, spearheads and swords raise different questions. Learn to separate an object’s identification from evidence for a battle.