The ancient Egyptians had a long tradition of carving
containers from various types of stone. The art of creating
such vessels reached it height during the first two dynasties,
when Egyptian artists used a multitude of different stones to
create exquisite cosmetic vessels and ceremonial vases of unusual
types not seen in later periods. During this period, stone
vessels were also made for purely funerary purposes.

The majority of stone vessels dating to Dynasty 2 were
carved from relatively soft Egyptian alabaster (calcite).