Using only stone and sand to shape and polish objects, Neolithic stoneworking reached extraordinary levels of sophistication. Artisans carved the stone so that natural veins in the rock followed the shape of the finished product. The largest excavated assemblage of Neolithic stone vessels comes from the site of Bouqras, on the Euphrates River.
Not on view
Period: Neolithic
Date: ca. late 8th millennium B.C.
Geography: Syria
Medium: Calcite alabaster
Dimensions: 1.76 in. (4.47 cm)
Classification: Stone-Vessels
Credit Line: Gift of Sheldon and Barbara Breitbart, 1985
Accession Number: 1985.356.19