The left side (from the viewer's perspective) has a trimming in the shape of a series diamonds, while the right side is trimmed in a series of squares. Instead of running directly under the lip of the bowl, both series of images wander and wobbles. The central image on the bowl, interconnected crisscross carvings in the middle of an egg-shaped focal point is similarly irregular.

It is unclear if these pigment in-fillings are purely decorative, or if they have a specific significance. The culture that produced the work does not seem to value harmony and balance of design as out culture does, but no historical or cultural context is given to the bowl beyond its coloring in Hamson's description. Hamson classifies the bowl as utilitarian, along with all other bowls in the collection, but whether the bowl was used for eating, for holding objects, for decorative, or ritual purposes is...
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