Egyptian Swimming-girl Spoons

The tools and containers for women’s cosmetics are some of the most beautiful artifacts from the ancient world, including the many lovely swimming-girl spoons from Egypt. (See photo above for a faience example from the Metropolitan Museum of Art collection.) At some point, I’ve seen one of these graceful but unusual looking “spoons,” but I knew nothing about them. I enjoyed this article about them in Ancient Near East Today.

Beautiful Utility

Egyptians prioritized cosmetics and other beautification for both men and women, living and dead. That the objects they used for these processes sometimes carried significant meaning, seems appropriate. I suspect, also, the desire to be surrounded by beautiful things also influenced these small works of art. The swimming-girl spoons, with straight legs and outstretched arms hold a variety of objects. Sometimes she holds a bird, sometimes a more obvious container like a bowl or basket. They are carved from various precious stones and woods.

The Legacy of Swimming-girl Spoons

This article “The Meaning and Symbolism of Swimming-girl Spoons from Egypt” discusses two possible interpretations of their mythical and religious significance. It also discusses how the design was revived centuries later elsewhere in the ancient world and even later in the Victorian period. What is it about these slender, swimming-girl spoons that so appeals to us that long after their original meaning was lost, humans kept recreating their form?

Further Reading

You might also enjoy reading my post about the significance of the Egyptian cartouche.