The first item is the Pyxis of Sayf-al-Dawla. It is a container made of expensive ivory and metal that is reserved to the wealthier families to contain their lavish belongings. The outside of the containers have plenty of figurative imagery to showcase who the container belongs to.

In Ancient Egypt, when a person, typically of high status, would pass, their coffins and tombs would be uniquely decorated based on the type of life that person lived. Their tombs would be filled with personal items from their life, along with their mummified body, so that they would be occupied during their eternal afterlife.

Cylinder seals were carved with concave carvings to be able to make an imprint when rolled onto clay or another impressionable material. They were buried usually with the higher class graves so they had unique designs that correspond to that individual's life and personality. Typically their own figures were carved larger in scale to show their power.