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Egyptian Artifacts Reading Hieroglyphs

Relief of Anubis

Today ๐“‡๐“‡‹๐“ˆ–๐“‡ณ I am going to be re-sharing one of my absolute favorite reliefs of Anubis ๐“‡‹๐“ˆ–๐“Šช๐“…ฑ๐“ƒฃ! This relief of Anubis ๐“‡‹๐“ˆ–๐“Šช๐“…ฑ๐“ƒฃ is from a larger limestone ๐“‡‹๐“ˆ–๐“ˆ™๐“Œ‰ piece that was made for Amenemhat Iโ€™s ๐“‡‹๐“ ๐“ˆ–๐“…“๐“„‚๐“ โ€œHeb Sedโ€ festival,ย  better known as the 30 ๐“Ž†๐“Ž†๐“Ž† Year Jubilee!ย 

There are so many amazing facts about Anubis ๐“‡‹๐“ˆ–๐“Šช๐“…ฑ๐“ข; I could probably write a book about him! Aptly named, โ€œLord of the Necropolis ๐“ŽŸ๐“‡พ๐“‚ฆ๐“ˆŠ,โ€ he was guardian of tombs ๐“‡‹๐“ซ๐“Šƒ๐“‰๐“ฆ and cemeteries. Anubis ๐“‡‹๐“ˆ–๐“Šช๐“…ฑ๐“ข was the god ๐“Šน of mummification ๐“‹ด๐“‚ง๐“๐“…ฑ๐“Ž, and the title โ€œHe who is in the mummy wrappings ๐“‡‹๐“ถ๐“…ฑ๐“๐“Ž๐“Š–โ€œ signifies Anubisโ€™ ๐“‡‹๐“ˆ–๐“Šช๐“…ฑ๐“ƒฃ role in the mummification ๐“‹ด๐“‚ง๐“๐“…ฑ๐“Ž process, which is what he is most known for.ย 

Anubis ๐“‡‹๐“ˆ–๐“Šช๐“…ฑ๐“ƒฃ also could act as a guide to souls ๐“‚“๐“‚“๐“‚“ in the Underworld ๐“‡ผ๐“„ฟ๐“๐“‰(referenced in the Pyramid Texts of Unas ๐“ƒน๐“ˆ–๐“‡‹๐“‹ด). One of his most famous roles is in the Weighing of the Heart, in which the dead ๐“…“๐“๐“ฑ personโ€™s heart ๐“‡‹๐“ƒ€๐“„ฃ would be weighed against Maatโ€™s ๐“™๐“Œด๐“‚ฃ๐“๐“ฆ feather ๐“†„๐“บ by Anubis ๐“‡‹๐“ˆ–๐“Šช๐“…ฑ๐“ƒฃ.  Basically, Anubis ๐“‡‹๐“ˆ–๐“Šช๐“…ฑ๐“ƒฃ played a big role in all aspects of a personโ€™s death ๐“…“๐“๐“ฑ, and death ๐“…“๐“๐“ฑ was a huge part of the Egyptian religion. 

Letโ€™s read some hieroglyphs ๐“Šน๐“Œƒ๐“ช (the ones above Anubisโ€™ ๐“‡‹๐“ˆ–๐“Šช๐“…ฑ๐“ƒฃ head)! This is part of a much larger inscription ๐“Ÿ๐“›๐“ฅ!

๐“ถ๐“…ฑ๐“๐“Ž- He Who is in the Mummy Wrappings – (the first symbol is cut off in my picture, ๐“‡‹๐“ถ๐“…ฑ๐“๐“Ž๐“Š–, but it actually can be written both ways)

๐“ŽŸ๐“‡ฟ๐“‡ฟ – Lord of the Two Lands (we have seen this one many times before – part of the titles of the pharaoh)!

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The Sarcophagus of Senemut

This large quartzite oval (that has been reconstructed from over 1200 pieces) is the Sarcophagus ๐“ŽŸ๐“‹น๐“ˆ–๐“๐“Šญ of Senemut ๐“Œข๐“ˆ–๐“…๐“€ผ!ย 

There are many interesting things about this sarcophagus ๐“ŽŸ๐“‹น๐“ˆ–๐“๐“Šญ! For one, it is actually painted ๐“ž๐“œ red ๐“‚ง๐“ˆ™๐“‚‹๐“…Ÿ so it looks more like red quartzite, which is more valuable! Another, is that it is extremely similar to Hatshepsutโ€™s ๐“‡‹๐“ ๐“ˆ–๐“Žน๐“๐“„‚๐“๐“€ผ๐“ช second sarcophagus ๐“ŽŸ๐“‹น๐“ˆ–๐“๐“Šญ in terms of composition/rock type, so they must have been quarried at the same time!

The inscriptions ๐“Ÿ๐“›๐“ฅ on the sarcophagus are from various chapters of the Book of the Dead, and many deities ๐“Šน๐“Šน๐“Šน such as Nut ๐“Œ๐“๐“‡ฏ๐“€ญ, Isis ๐“Šจ๐“๐“ฅ, Nephthys ๐“‰ ๐“๐“†‡, and Anubis ๐“‡‹๐“ˆ–๐“Šช๐“…ฑ๐“ƒฃ all make appearances along with the usual dedications that the deceased would make to these deities ๐“Šน๐“Šน๐“Šน. Unfortunately due to the state the sarcophagus ๐“ŽŸ๐“‹น๐“ˆ–๐“๐“Šญ was found in, many of the inscriptions ๐“Ÿ๐“›๐“ฅ are now fragmented, but Egyptologists can put together the pieces!

Senemut ๐“Œข๐“ˆ–๐“…๐“€ผ, although not of noble birth, became an extremely important figure during the reign of Hatshepsut ๐“‡‹๐“ ๐“ˆ–๐“Žน๐“๐“„‚๐“๐“€ผ๐“ช  Senemut ๐“Œข๐“ˆ–๐“…๐“€ผ was Hatshepsutโ€™s ๐“‡‹๐“ ๐“ˆ–๐“Žน๐“๐“„‚๐“๐“€ผ๐“ช closest advisor, the tutor for her daughter Neferure ๐“‡ณ๐“„ค๐“„ค๐“„ค, and the architect responsible for building her mortuary temple at Deir el-Bahari ๐“‚ฆ๐“‚‹๐“‚ฆ๐“ฅ๐“‰. Some of Senemutโ€™s ๐“Œข๐“ˆ–๐“…๐“€ผ many titles appear on the sarcophagus as well, such as Steward of Amun, Chief Steward of the King, Overseer of the Treasury, Granary, Fields, Cattle of Amun, a Controller of Works, and so many more!

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Video

Canopic Jars (Video)

The Four Sons of Horus were an integral part of ancient Egyptian religion – usually in a funerary aspect. 

During the process of mummification ๐“‹ด๐“‚ง๐“๐“…ฑ๐“Ž (which took about 70 ๐“Ž†๐“Ž†๐“Ž†๐“Ž†๐“Ž†๐“Ž†๐“Ž† days), the embalmers removed the internal organs ๐“‡‹๐“‚ง๐“‚‹๐“„น๐“ฆ and placed them in Canopic Jars. Each of the four ๐“ฝ jars was for one of the major internal organs ๐“‡‹๐“‚ง๐“‚‹๐“„น๐“ฆ and each jar had a different head which represented one of the four Sons of Horus.

Qebehsenuef ๐“๐“Œข๐“Œข๐“Œข๐“†‘๐“€ญ (falcon head) held/protected the intestines ๐“ˆ–๐“Šช๐“…ฎ๐“„ฟ๐“ฒ๐“ผ. 

Hapi ๐“Ž›๐“‘๐“Šช๐“‡Œ๐“€ญ (baboon head) held/protected the lungs ๐“Šƒ๐“Œด๐“„ฅ๐“…ฑ๐“„บ

Duamutef ๐“‡ผ๐“…๐“๐“†‘๐“€ญ (jackal head) held/protected the stomach ๐“‚‹๐“„ฃ๐“ป

Imseti ๐“‡‹๐“…“๐“Šƒ๐“ฟ๐“€ญ (human head) held/protected the liver ๐“…“๐“Šƒ๐“๐“„น๐“ธ๐“ธ๐“ธ

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Video

Statue of Imhotep (Video)

My Nonno always made a point to make sure we saw Imhotep ๐“‡๐“…“๐“Šต๐“๐“Šช in every museum that we went to. It was part of the fun of going to the museum!! After seeing โ€œThe Mummyโ€ for the first time when I was about ten ๐“Ž† years old, I had already known about Imhotep ๐“‡๐“…“๐“Šต๐“๐“Šช for years from a historical perspective!!

Imhotep ๐“‡๐“…“๐“Šต๐“๐“Šช, meaning โ€œHe who comes in peace,โ€ was a non-royal man ๐“Šƒ๐“€€๐“ค who became deified (reached godly status).  This is a very rare occurrence, as it was thought by the Egyptians ๐“†Ž๐“๐“€€๐“๐“ช that the Pharaoh ๐“‰๐“‰ป was the only god ๐“Šน on the Earth ๐“‡พ๐“‡พ.  Imhotep ๐“‡๐“…“๐“Šต๐“๐“Šช was not deified in his lifetime – it was about 2,000 ๐“†ผ๐“†ผ years after his death ๐“…“๐“๐“ฑ that he began to be worshipped ๐“‡ผ๐“„ฟ๐“€ข as a god ๐“Šน.  

Not much is known about Imhotep ๐“‡๐“…“๐“Šต๐“๐“Šช from his lifetime – much information about Imhotep ๐“‡๐“…“๐“Šต๐“๐“Šช is from Demotic texts or stelae ๐“Ž—๐“…ฑ๐“†“๐“‰ธ๐“ช that were written thousands of years after his death ๐“…“๐“๐“ฑ. 

Imhotep ๐“‡๐“…“๐“Šต๐“๐“Šช is famous for being an incredible architect and is credited with designing Djoserโ€™s ๐“‚ฆ Step Pyramid (aka the first ever pyramid ๐“‹๐“…“๐“‚‹๐“‰ด) at Memphis ๐“ ๐“ˆ–๐“„ค๐“†‘๐“‚‹๐“‰ด๐“Š– (modern day Saqqara). He was also a physician! 

Imhotep ๐“‡๐“…“๐“Šต๐“๐“Šช is always depicted as a man ๐“Šƒ๐“€€๐“ค seated in a chair, usually with a piece of papyrus ๐“…“๐“‘๐“๐“› in his lap. Much like the god ๐“Šน Ptah ๐“Šช๐“๐“Ž›๐“ฑ(who he is said to be the son ๐“…ญ of), he wears a cap on his head. Once you are able to remember what Imhotep ๐“‡๐“…“๐“Šต๐“๐“Šช statues ๐“„š๐“ˆ–๐“๐“ญ๐“€พ๐“ช look like, you will be able to recognize them in any museum that you go to! 

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Video

Blue Faience Tiles from Djoser’s Step Pyramid (Video)

These blue ๐“‡‹๐“น๐“๐“„ฟ๐“ธ๐“ฅ faience ๐“‹ฃ๐“ˆ–๐“๐“ธ๐“ผ tiles decorated the lower levels of Djoserโ€™s ๐“‚ฆ Step Pyramid ๐“‹๐“…“๐“‚‹๐“‰ด Complex. There were over 30,000 tiles used!!! The tiles were meant to represent various types of reeds that covered the walls of Djoserโ€™s ๐“‚ฆ palace. 

I have always been obsessed with anything having to do with the Step Pyramid ๐“‹๐“…“๐“‚‹๐“‰ด solely because of Imhotep ๐“‡๐“…“๐“Šต๐“๐“Šช. My Nonno always spoke more about Imhotep ๐“‡๐“…“๐“Šต๐“๐“Šช than Djoser ๐“‚ฆ! My Nonno always pointed these tiles out to me in the museum. While to most people, the tiles look somewhat insignificant compared to beautifully ๐“„ค carved reliefs and statues ๐“๐“…ฑ๐“๐“€พ๐“ช, my Nonno always said that these types of tiles were important because they were really only found in the Step Pyramid ๐“‹๐“…“๐“‚‹๐“‰ด and one of Djoserโ€™s ๐“‚ฆ other buildings at Saqqara. The tiles were pretty much a โ€œuniquely Imhotep ๐“‡๐“…“๐“Šต๐“๐“Šชโ€ thing according to Nonno! 

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Video

Head of Tutankhamun (Video)

To celebrate the 100 ๐“ฒ year anniversary of the discovery of Pharaoh Tutankhamunโ€™s ๐“‡‹๐“ ๐“ˆ–๐“๐“…ฑ๐“๐“‹น๐“‹พ๐“‰บ๐“‡“ tomb ๐“‡‹๐“ซ๐“Šƒ๐“‰ (11/4/1922), here is a closer look at the head of a statue ๐“๐“…ฑ๐“๐“€พ of Tutankhamun ๐“‡‹๐“ ๐“ˆ–๐“๐“…ฑ๐“๐“‹น๐“‹พ๐“‰บ๐“‡“! 

While to most this statue ๐“๐“…ฑ๐“๐“€พ head may seem anti-climatic after seeing the Temple of Dendur, I have always loved it because it is a portrait of Pharaoh Tutankhamun ๐“‡‹๐“ ๐“ˆ–๐“๐“…ฑ๐“๐“‹น๐“‹พ๐“‰บ๐“‡“. As a kid, seeing King Tut in the MET was just SO COOL. I still think itโ€™s cool – even though Iโ€™m an adult, I still canโ€™t shake the child-like fascination I have with Tutankhamun ๐“‡‹๐“ ๐“ˆ–๐“๐“…ฑ๐“๐“‹น๐“‹พ๐“‰บ๐“‡“

This limestone ๐“‡‹๐“ˆ–๐“ˆ™๐“Œ‰ statue ๐“๐“…ฑ๐“๐“€พ was made during Tutankhamunโ€™s ๐“‡‹๐“ ๐“ˆ–๐“๐“…ฑ๐“๐“‹น๐“‹พ๐“‰บ๐“‡“ reign (18th Dynasty), and it shows that Tutankhamun ๐“‡‹๐“ ๐“ˆ–๐“๐“…ฑ๐“๐“‹น๐“‹พ๐“‰บ๐“‡“ brought back the old religion and traditional styles of Egyptian art and sculpture. 

The hand ๐“‚ง๐“๐“บ that can be seen on the back of Tutankhamunโ€™s ๐“‡‹๐“ ๐“ˆ–๐“๐“…ฑ๐“๐“‹น๐“‹พ๐“‰บ๐“‡“ head is the hand ๐“‚ง๐“๐“บ of the god ๐“Šน Amun ๐“‡‹๐“ ๐“ˆ–๐“€ญ. Since Amun ๐“‡‹๐“ ๐“ˆ–๐“€ญ (king of the gods ๐“Šน๐“Šน๐“Šน) is touching Tutankhamunโ€™s crown, it can be interpreted that Amun ๐“‡‹๐“ ๐“ˆ–๐“€ญ approved of Tutankhamunโ€™s ๐“‡‹๐“ ๐“ˆ–๐“๐“…ฑ๐“๐“‹น๐“‹พ๐“‰บ๐“‡“ reign. 

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Egyptian Artifacts

Gold Statuette of Amun

This gold ๐“‹ž๐“ƒ‰๐“ƒ‰๐“ƒ‰ statuette ๐“๐“…ฑ๐“๐“€พ of the god ๐“Šน Amun ๐“‡‹๐“ ๐“ˆ–๐“€ญ is so beautiful ๐“„ค to see in person! In the picture ๐“๐“…ฑ๐“ the statue ๐“๐“…ฑ๐“๐“€พ looks large but it is only about 7 inches (~18cm) tall! This statue is dated to the 22nd Dynasty (c. 945โ€“712 B.C.E.). While the artistic features of the statue ๐“๐“…ฑ๐“๐“€พ definitely reflect this Third Intermediate Period, there are some callbacks to the 18th Dynasty artistic styles (the facial features in particular).ย 

This solid gold ๐“‹ž๐“ƒ‰๐“ƒ‰๐“ƒ‰ statue ๐“๐“…ฑ๐“๐“€พ is a very rare example of the statues ๐“๐“…ฑ๐“๐“€พ๐“ช that filled the sanctuaries of the temples ๐“‰Ÿ๐“๐“‰. There is a trace of a loop on Amunโ€™s ๐“‡‹๐“ ๐“ˆ–๐“€ญ crown, which means that this statuette ๐“๐“…ฑ๐“๐“€พ could have been worn by a priest ๐“Šน๐“› or by another statue ๐“๐“…ฑ๐“๐“€พ. Or, the statue ๐“๐“…ฑ๐“๐“€พ could have been mounted on top of a scepter or standard. The exact use is speculation right now! The color of gold ๐“‹ž๐“ƒ‰๐“ƒ‰๐“ƒ‰ was often associated with the sun ๐“†„๐“…ฑ๐“‡ถ, and the skin of the gods ๐“Šน๐“Šน๐“Šน were thought to be made of gold ๐“‹ž๐“ƒ‰๐“ƒ‰๐“ƒ‰. 

Amun ๐“‡‹๐“ ๐“ˆ–๐“€ญ is depicted with his flat topped crown, with the characteristic feathers ๐“†„๐“†„๐“†„ having been lost in antiquity. He is wearing the false beard, and is carrying the Ankh ๐“‹น, a symbol of life ๐“‹น๐“ˆ–๐“, in his hand. In the other hand he carries a scimitar ๐“Œ›๐“บ, which in temple reliefs, Amun ๐“‡‹๐“ ๐“ˆ–๐“€ญ is usually seen presenting to the pharaoh ๐“‰๐“‰ป. This gift of a scimitar ๐“Œ›๐“บ is usually meant to ensure military victories!

The god ๐“Šน Amun ๐“‡‹๐“ ๐“ˆ–๐“€ญ gained popularity during the Middle Kingdom, however, it was during the New Kingdom (18th Dynasty in particular) that Amun ๐“‡‹๐“ ๐“ˆ–๐“€ญ became the most important/most prominent god ๐“Šน in the Egyptian pantheon. Amun ๐“‡‹๐“ ๐“ˆ–๐“€ญ had many different roles and was worshipped ๐“‡ผ๐“„ฟ๐“€ข as a creator god, solar god, fertility god, warrior god, and king of the gods. Amunโ€™s ๐“‡‹๐“ ๐“ˆ–๐“€ญ is also considered the โ€œuniversal godโ€ meaning that his power permeated the cosmos and all that the cosmos contained! 

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Egyptian Artifacts

Magical Stelae – “Cippus”

These pieces are known as Magical Stelae, or a Cippus.

The Cippus depicts Horus ๐“…ƒ๐“€ญ (or technically Harpokrates ๐“…ƒ๐“€ญ๐“…ฎ๐“„ฟ๐“„ก๐“‚‹๐“‚ง๐“€”๐“€ญ, the Greek version of Horus ๐“…ƒ๐“€ญ) standing on two ๐“ป crocodiles ๐“…“๐“‹ด๐“Ž›๐“†Œ๐“ฅ and holding other dangerous animals such as snakes ๐“‡‹๐“‚๐“‚‹๐“๐“†˜๐“ช and scorpions ๐“‹ด๐“‚‹๐“ˆŽ๐“๐“†ซ๐“ช in each hand. The god ๐“Šน Bes ๐“ƒ€๐“‹ด๐“„œ also appears above Horusโ€™ ๐“…ƒ๐“€ญ head ๐“ถ๐“บ. Bes ๐“ƒ€๐“‹ด๐“„œ was known to ward off evil ๐“ƒ€๐“‡‹๐“ˆ–๐“๐“…จ and bad luck.ย 

Normally, stela ๐“Ž—๐“…ฑ๐“†“๐“‰ธ were used to commemorate the dead ๐“…“๐“๐“ฑ so a Cippus is almost like a protective amulet ๐“Š๐“Šช๐“…† in the form of a stela ๐“Ž—๐“…ฑ๐“†“๐“‰ธ. This Cippus was used by the living ๐“†ฃ๐“‚‹๐“€€๐“ช for protection ๐“…“๐“‚๐“Žก๐“€œ. Since the Old Kingdom, Horus ๐“…ƒ๐“€ญ was called upon as a defender against snake ๐“‡‹๐“‚๐“‚‹๐“๐“†˜ or scorpion ๐“‹ด๐“‚‹๐“ˆŽ๐“๐“†ซ bites. Placing the Cippus on a wound would evoke its magical ๐“Ž›๐“‚“๐“„ฟ๐“œ and healing powers. Cippus stela ๐“Ž—๐“…ฑ๐“†“๐“‰ธ like this were usually kept in homes ๐“‰๐“ฆ due to their protective nature.

Cippus pieces have also been found in tombs ๐“‡‹๐“ซ๐“Šƒ๐“‰๐“ช, so we can assume that the Egyptians thought it not only would help protect ๐“…“๐“‚๐“Žก๐“€œ the living ๐“†ฃ๐“‚‹๐“€€๐“ช , but the dead ๐“…“๐“๐“ฑ too. 

One thing I love about this display at the Louvre is now all of the Cippus pieces are together ๐“ˆ–๐“Š— in one single case! I also think the one in the middle, the statue ๐“๐“…ฑ๐“๐“€พ of the man ๐“Šƒ๐“€€๐“ค holding a Cippus is very unique; this was the first time I saw a statue ๐“๐“…ฑ๐“๐“€พ like that! 

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Egyptian Artifacts

Boat of Mutemwia

This statue ๐“๐“…ฑ๐“๐“€พ is dedicated to Mutemwia ๐“๐“…๐“…“๐“Šž who was a minor wife ๐“‚‘๐“๐“ of Thutmosis IV ๐“‡ณ๐“ ๐“†ฃ๐“ผ and mother ๐“…๐“๐“ of the pharaoh ๐“‰๐“‰ป Amenhotep III ๐“‡ณ๐“ง๐“Ž .ย 

This statue was originally meant to show Mutemwia ๐“๐“…๐“…“๐“Šž on a sacred boat ๐“‚ง๐“Šช๐“๐“Šž(her body has been broken off). The boat ๐“‚ง๐“Šช๐“๐“Šž has the goddess Hathor ๐“‰ก on the front. The sides of the boat ๐“‚ง๐“Šช๐“๐“Šž are inscribed with the name and titles of Mutemwia ๐“๐“…๐“…“๐“Šž along with a carving of the Wedjat ๐“‚€. Cartouches showing the names ๐“‚‹๐“ˆ–๐“ฆ of Mutemwia ๐“๐“…๐“…“๐“Šž and Amenhotep III ๐“‡ณ๐“ง๐“Ž  are also inscribed on the boat ๐“‚ง๐“Šช๐“๐“Šž. 

Mutemwia ๐“๐“…๐“…“๐“Šž held many titles such as the โ€œGreat Kingโ€™s Wife His Beloved ๐“‡“๐“๐“๐“ˆž๐“…ฉ๐“‚‹๐“๐“ˆ˜๐“†‘,โ€ โ€œLady of the Two Lands ๐“Ž›๐“Œ๐“๐“‡ฟ๐“‡ฟ,โ€ โ€œGodโ€™s Mother ๐“Šน๐“…,โ€ and โ€œKingโ€™s Mother ๐“‡“๐“….โ€ The latter two titles mean the same thing – since the pharaoh ๐“‰๐“‰ป (Amenhotep III ๐“‡ณ๐“ง๐“Ž ) was a god ๐“Šน on Earth ๐“‡พ๐“‡พ. 

Something interesting though that these titles listed above were only used after the death of Thutmosis IV ๐“‡ณ๐“ ๐“†ฃ๐“ผ. It seems that Amenhotep III ๐“‡ณ๐“ง๐“Ž  elevated his motherโ€™s ๐“…๐“๐“ status when he became the pharaoh ๐“‰๐“‰ป. In the Luxor Temple, Mutemwia ๐“๐“…๐“…“๐“Šž is depicted in the reliefs of the divine birth of Amenhotep III ๐“‡ณ๐“ง๐“Ž  – and these reliefs are almost an exact copy of the ones from the divine birth of Hatshepsut ๐“‡‹๐“ ๐“ˆ–๐“Žน๐“๐“„‚๐“๐“€ผ๐“ช at Deir el-Bahri ๐“‚ฆ๐“‚‹๐“‚ฆ๐“ฅ๐“‰. 

The boat ๐“‚ง๐“Šช๐“๐“Šž is made of the rock ๐“‡‹๐“ˆ–๐“‚‹๐“ˆ™ granodiorite, which is an igneous (volcanic) rock ๐“‡‹๐“ˆ–๐“‚‹๐“ˆ™ that is kind of the mix of both granite ๐“‡‹๐“ˆ–๐“ˆ™๐“ˆ–๐“Œณ๐“ฟ and diorite. Granodiorite is an intrusive rock, meaning it formed underground, which also makes it a very strong and durable piece of material! 

Categories
Egyptian Artifacts

Large Scarab at the British Museum

This is definitely the largest scarab ๐“๐“Šช๐“‚‹๐“‚‹๐“†ฃ that I have ever seen!ย  I was shocked when I saw just how big it was in the British Museum! I have honestly never seen anything like it in any of the other museums I have visited!

This scarab ๐“๐“Šช๐“‚‹๐“‚‹๐“†ฃ represented Khepri ๐“†ฃ๐“‚‹๐“€ญ. Khepri ๐“†ฃ๐“‚‹๐“€ญ the god ๐“Šน that was associated with the โ€œrising of the sun ๐“…ƒ๐“ˆŒ๐“๐“ญ๐“€ญโ€ (these hieroglyphs ๐“Šน๐“Œƒ๐“ช translate to โ€œsun at dawnโ€) and thus he is associated with life ๐“‹น๐“ˆ–๐“ and rebirth. Scarabs ๐“๐“Šช๐“‚‹๐“‚‹๐“†ฃ๐“ช were extremely popular as amulets ๐“Š๐“Šช๐“…†๐“ช, and were considered to have the strongest ๐“„‡๐“๐“‚๐“ญ protection ๐“…“๐“‚๐“Žก๐“€œ powers. 

The โ€œscarab beetle ๐“†ฃโ€ hieroglyph ๐“Šน๐“Œƒ symbol is a determinative, ideogram and phonogram symbol! It is associated with the sound แธซpr (like โ€œKheperโ€) is also used to write the words “evolve,โ€ โ€œmanifestation,โ€ and “become.”

From a geologic perspective, this scarab ๐“๐“Šช๐“‚‹๐“‚‹๐“†ฃ is made of the rock ๐“‡‹๐“ˆ–๐“‚‹๐“ˆ™ diorite.  Diorite is an intrusive igneous rock (meaning it forms underground from the solidification of magma). Diorite is an extremely durable rock ๐“‡‹๐“ˆ–๐“‚‹๐“ˆ™ (one of the strongest found on Earth ๐“‡พ๐“‡พ), and is comparable to granite ๐“‡‹๐“ˆ–๐“ˆ™๐“ˆ–๐“Œณ๐“ฟ in terms of strength and method of formation.  

However, diorite usually doesn’t contain a lot quartz ๐“ ๐“ˆ–๐“Œ๐“ˆ™, a very strong ๐“„‡๐“๐“‚๐“ญ mineral which is abundant in granite ๐“‡‹๐“ˆ–๐“ˆ™๐“ˆ–๐“Œณ๐“ฟ, hence the difference between the two ๐“ป rocks ๐“‡‹๐“ˆ–๐“‚‹๐“ˆ™๐“ฆ. One of the reasons why this scarab ๐“๐“Šช๐“‚‹๐“‚‹๐“†ฃ is so well preserved, is probably due to the strength of the diorite!  Diorite, like granite ๐“‡‹๐“ˆ–๐“ˆ™๐“ˆ–๐“Œณ๐“ฟ, was usually mined by the Egyptians in Aswan ๐“‹ด๐“ƒน๐“ˆ–๐“Œ๐“ฒ๐“Œ•๐“Š–

As you all know, ancient Egypt ๐“†Ž๐“…“๐“๐“Š– is one of my biggest passions, however I actually have degrees in Earth and Environmental science! I love combining my passions for Egyptian history and geology together ๐“ˆ–๐“Š—!