Painted fragment (ostracon) of Osiris

myminifactory

An ostracon is a piece of pottery, usually broken off from a vase or other eathernware vessel. Because they were durable and plentiful, the fragments would have had text or images scratched onto them. Most commonly they were used as convenient tools for writing but it was also commonly used like a sketchpad for practicing drawing. This particular fragment holds a drawing of the god Osiris, and there is a poorly preserved hieratic inscription written on the back.