Potsherd

Piece of broken pottery used in OT times to carry hot coals or to dip water. Potsherds were also used as lids for storage containers or cooking kettles, as a medium for written communication, or to add grit to waterproofing compounds. The symbolic importance of sherds is clear in Psalm 22:15, Isaiah 30:14, 45:9, and Ezekiel 23:34.

See also Pottery; Writing (Potsherds).