Tool
Unknown Artist
5th–3rd millennium BCE
Medium
Copper
Dimensions
0.79 x 2.87 in. (2.01 x 7.29 cm)
Classification
Metalwork-Implements
Culture & Period
Iran · Chalcolithic–Early Bronze Age
Department
Ancient Near Eastern Art
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Rogers Fund, 1938
Accession Number
38.40.393
Art Historical Context
This unassuming copper tool, dating to the Chalcolithic–Early Age (5th–3rd millennium BCE), hails from ancient Iran and offers a window into one of humanity's pivotal technological leaps. Crafted during a time when communities in the Ancient Near East transitioned from stone to metal, it exemplifies early metalworking in the region. Measuring just 0.79 x 2.87 inches, its petite scale suggests it was a practical implement—perhaps an awl, chisel, or scraper—used in daily crafts like woodworking or leatherworking. The medium of copper is key to its significance. The Chalcolithic period, meaning ...