I absolutely love amulets ๐๐ช๐ ๐ช because I love tiny ๐๐๐ด๐ ฉ things! The MET has an incredible collection of amulets ๐๐ช๐ ๐ช, and I feel like most people just walk by them because they’re so small ๐๐๐ด๐ ฉ! But even small ๐๐๐ด๐ ฉ objects can tell incredible stories about history!
In ancient Egyptian religion and culture, amulets ๐๐ช๐ ๐ช were thought to have magical ๐๐๐ฟ๐ powers and bestow them upon its wearer. Worn by both the living and the dead ๐ ๐๐ฑ, different amulets ๐๐ช๐ ๐ช served various religious and protective functions. Amulets ๐๐ช๐ ๐ช were usually made of faience ๐ฃ๐๐๐ธ๐ผ, which is a cheap and easy material to work with. Most faience ๐ฃ๐๐๐ธ๐ผ pieces have a green/blue ๐ ๐๐ color. This is because these colors were thought to represent life ๐น and regeneration.
The djed pillar ๐ฝ was associated with Osiris ๐น๐จ๐ญ and his regenerative powers and is thus considered an amulet ๐๐ช๐ of power. The djed pillars ๐ฝ are usually blue ๐๐น๐๐ฟ๐ธ๐ฅ or green ๐ ๐ฟ๐๐ in color to represent the Nile River ๐๐๐๐ ฑ๐๐๐๐บ. These amulets ๐๐ช๐ ๐ช date back to the Old Kingdom, and were used throughout Egyptian history. In the New Kingdom, they were strung around the neck of the deceased ๐ ๐๐ฑ. In hieroglyphs ๐น๐๐ช, the djed ๐ฝ symbol means โstabilityโ or โenduring.โ
The djed pillar ๐ฝ has also been thought to represent the spine of Osiris ๐น๐จ๐ญ, as referenced in The Book of the Dead: โRaise yourself up Osiris. You have your backbone once more, weary-hearted One; you have bones.โ