British Museum, EA 20790, EA 20792, Louvre E 11254
The Hunters Palette or Lion Hunt Palette is a
c. 3100 BCEcosmetic palette from the
Naqada III period of late
prehistoric Egypt. The palette is broken: part is held by the British Museum and part is in the collection of the
Louvre.
Content
The Hunters Palette shows a complex
iconography of
lion hunting as well as the hunt of other animals such as birds, desert
hares, and
gazelle types; one gazelle is being contained by a rope. The weapons used in the twenty-man hunt are the
bow and arrow,
mace,
throwing sticks, flint knives, and
spears. Two iconographic conjoined bull-forefronts adorn the upper right alongside a hieroglyphic-like symbol similar to the "shrine" hieroglyph, sḥ.
Details
Louvre fragment showing various weapons
Hunters Palette, details, especially a lion's body with arrows.