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Egyptian Artifacts

Amulets at the British Museum

The ancient Egyptians used amulets π“Šπ“Šͺπ“…†π“ͺ a lot in both their daily life and afterlife 𓇼𓄿𓏏𓉐! No matter who was wearing it, amulets π“Šπ“Šͺπ“…†π“ͺ had the same function: to invoke magical protection π“…“π“‚π“Ž‘π“€œ for the wearer! Amulets π“Šπ“Šͺπ“…†π“ͺ could represent gods π“ŠΉπ“ŠΉπ“ŠΉ and goddesses π“ŠΉπ“ŠΉπ“ŠΉπ“, everyday objects, hieroglyphs π“ŠΉπ“Œƒπ“ͺ, plants 𓆾𓆰𓆰𓆰, and many other things!

In this display at the British Museum, there are a bunch of different amulets π“Šπ“Šͺπ“…†π“ͺ featured! The Osiris π“Ήπ“Š¨π“€­ amulet (3) is considered unusual because it shows Osiris π“Ήπ“Š¨π“€­ sitting on a throne wearing the Atef crown π“‹š, just how he would be depicted in the Book of the Dead or on various reliefs. The Osiris π“Ήπ“Š¨π“€­ amulets were the most popular form of funerary jewelry and were tasked with overall protection π“…“π“‚π“Ž‘π“€œ for the deceased 𓅓𓏏𓏱.

The Anubis π“‡‹π“ˆ–π“Šͺ𓅱𓃣 amulet (4) was most likely only used by the dead 𓅓𓏏𓏱 because of Anubis’ π“‡‹π“ˆ–π“Šͺ𓅱𓃣 association with mummification and tombs π“‡‹π“«π“Šƒπ“‰. It most likely protected π“…“π“‚π“Ž‘π“€œ the body of the dead to ensure the deceased 𓅓𓏏𓏱 could make it to the afterlife 𓇼𓄿𓏏𓉐.

The Triad Amulet (5) (sometimes referred to as the Ossirian Triad) is a representation of Isis π“Š¨π“π“₯ (goddess π“ŠΉπ“ of healing and magic), Horus π“…ƒπ“€­ (god π“ŠΉ of the sky and the protector of the ruler of Egypt), and Nephthys 𓉠𓏏𓆇 (β€œMistress of the House” and associated with vultures). Isis π“Š¨π“π“₯ is the mother 𓅐𓏏𓁐 of Horus π“…ƒπ“€­, the sister π“Œ’π“ˆ–π“ of Nephthys 𓉠𓏏𓆇, and the wife π“ˆŸπ“ of Osiris π“Ήπ“Š¨π“€­. The amulet π“Šπ“Šͺπ“…† is representative of Isis π“Š¨π“π“₯ and Nephthys 𓉠𓏏𓆇 protecting Horus π“…ƒπ“€­ and that protective power extends to the wearer. This amulet π“Šπ“Šͺπ“…† became very popular during the 26th Dynasty, and was usually used by mummies 𓇋𓁹𓅱𓀾π“ͺ for protection π“…“π“‚π“Ž‘π“€œ on their journey into the afterlife 𓇼𓄿𓏏𓉐. The amulet π“Šπ“Šͺπ“…† was either placed on the chest, stomach 𓂋𓄣𓏻, or the thighs of the mummy 𓇋𓁹𓅱𓀾.

The carpenter’s tools π“Š‹ (16) are interesting because they might have guaranteed eternal 𓆖 righteousness and equilibrium. This is an example of an everyday object that had magical powers when an amulet π“Šπ“Šͺπ“…†! These would have been placed on a mummy 𓇋𓁹𓅱𓀾!

The staircase amulets π“Š (17) represent the primordial mound from which all life π“‹Ήπ“ˆ–π“ was created. Here is the short version of the myth because it can be long/complicated and there are many versions:

The ancient Egyptian creation myth begins with endless dark water without any purpose or matter. Out of this dark water π“ˆ—, rose the primordial hill and the god π“ŠΉ Atum π“‡‹π“π“‚Ÿπ“€­ (or Ptah π“Šͺπ“π“Ž›π“± in some of the myths). Then with his own shadow, Atum π“‡‹π“π“‚Ÿπ“€­ gave birth to Shu 𓇋𓅱𓀭 (god π“ŠΉ of the atmosphere/principles of life) and Tefenet π“π“†‘π“ˆ–π“π“†— (goddess π“ŠΉπ“ of moisture/order). Since there was only the primordial hill, Shu 𓇋𓅱𓀭 and Tefenet π“π“†‘π“ˆ–π“π“†— gave birth to Geb 𓅭𓃀𓀭 (god of the Earth 𓇾𓇾) and Nut π“Œπ“π“‡―π“€­ (goddess of the sky π“Šͺ𓏏𓇯/cosmos). Geb 𓅭𓃀𓀭 and Nut π“Œπ“π“‡―π“€­ eventually gave birth to the more recognizable gods – Osiris π“Ήπ“Š¨π“€­, Isis π“Š¨π“π“₯, Seth π“Šƒπ“π“„‘π“£, and Nephthys 𓉠𓏏𓆇.