Mosaic Cube Pair M & L

Mosaic Cube Pair, M and L

Two mosaic cube lamps, one medium and one large, sold together for less than the two cost separately. Unlike most of what we sell, these are not carved from a single block. Each cube is built up from dozens of small Egyptian alabaster tiles, cut by hand in Luxor and set edge to edge into a box. Where the tiles meet there is a seam. Switch the lamp on and the seams turn into a grid of thin bright lines, while the tiles themselves glow amber, each one a slightly different shade because each came from a different part of the stone.

That is the point of the mosaic construction. A solid piece glows evenly. This one does not. You get warm patches and darker ones, with a lattice of light running between them. The banding in the stone, invisible with the lamp off, shows up as faint horizontal stripes across individual tiles.

The stone people call Egyptian alabaster is actually calcite, a banded travertine laid down in layers by water moving through limestone caves. Mohs hardness sits around 3, so it takes a hand tool without shattering but will scratch if you are careless. Keep it away from vinegar and anything acidic, since acid etches calcium-based stone. Dust with a soft dry cloth.

Two sizes together mean you can run them at different heights, or put one on the floor and one on a shelf. No two tiles match, so no two cubes match either. The pair you receive will not look exactly like the photograph.

Specifications

• Set: two mosaic cube lamps, medium and large
• Material: hand-cut calcite tiles
• Construction: tiled mosaic, not a single block
• Finish: natural stone, translucent when lit
• Care: soft dry cloth only; no acidic or abrasive cleaners; avoid prolonged contact with water
• Bulb: E27 fitting. Bulb not included.

Where it comes from

The tiles are cut and set in Luxor, Upper Egypt, mostly in workshops on the west bank of the Nile. The stone has been quarried in Egypt since antiquity, from sites in the region around Luxor and in Middle Egypt, among them Hatnub, Wadi Gerrawi and Wadi el-Assiuti, several of which were worked as far back as the Predynastic period.

We hold stock in Amsterdam and post from Amsterdam. Nothing travels from Egypt once you order. Delivery inside the EU takes days, not weeks, and there is no customs charge.