Carinated bowl

The artefact MU2688 is a small carinated bowl housed in the Macquarie University Macaquarie University History Museum. The object originates from Stratum II in Beersheba, Israel. The bowl is intact apart from severe cracking along the body and rim of the vessel, random chipping on the body, as well as evidence of wear on the exterior. The state of preservation is poor, with significant fading of the internal and external surfaces. Surface treatment is evident in the non-reflective surface of the vessel, indicating that the outside was wet-smoothed. A slight red slip was also applied to the vessel before firing. The rim has been modelled, which is emphasised by the altered contour of the rim’s edge. The object has a flat base that is concave inside; this would have been formed through the process of trimming, where excess clay on the base of the vessel was cut away with a sharp tool. Further, the interior of the vessel shows evidence of rilling marks, indicating that the vessel was wheel-made. There is no evidence of decoration applied to the exterior of the object. This carinated bowl bears resemblance to bowls used for funerary gifts found in the Iron Age II (late 7th Century to early 6th Century BCE) that would have been interred in rock-hewn family burial caves.