Shallow open bowls made of glazed bowls were popular from the late Middle Kingdom, both as part of tomb equipment and also temple offerings, most notably in relation to the cult of the goddess Hathor. The colour of such bowls made reference to Hathor’s epithet of ‘Lady of Turquoise’. Such bowls, often termed ‘marsh bowls’ or ‘Nun bowls’ (the Egyptian word for the primordial waters), frequently displayed decoration of marsh flora and fauna. Typical images included lotus and papyrus plants, and fish, often arranged symmetrically around a central design representing a pond. Such motifs symbolised themes of fertility and rebirth; for example, the lotus represented regeneration for the opening and closing of its petals each morning and night. Other bowls contained decoration more overtly referencing Hathor and her cult, often displaying the face of the Goddess herself. This bowl was one of many items found deposited at the mortuary temple of Deir el-Bahari during the New Kingdom. They were deposited as votive offerings, placed in the shrine to the goddess Hathor within the temple complex.