Sherd

Halaf pottery was made by hand and decorated with very finely executed designs in one or two colors. The surface of the finest pottery was then highly burnished and a glossy effect was achieved by the use of fluxes, which serve to lower the melting point of the pigments, in some cases accidentally achieving true glazes. This fragment of a thin walled vessel has the exterior painted with light and dark brown decoration consisting of a stylized bird in profile with back arched, a long neck, and a large circular head. A vertical zigzag pattern on the left and a dark brown band partly frame the bird. The rim edge has a horizontal band with vertical stripes.