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Egyptian Artifacts Reading Hieroglyphs

Steatite Scarab Ring

This mounted steatite ๐“…ฎ๐“ˆŽ๐“๐“ˆ’๐“ŠŒ scarab ๐“๐“Šช๐“‚‹๐“‚‹๐“†ฃ ring ๐“‚๐“ˆ–๐“๐“‹ช inscribed with the throne name cartouche ๐“ ๐“ˆ–๐“ˆ™๐“ท of the pharaoh ๐“‰๐“‰ป Thutmosis III ๐“‡ณ๐“ ๐“†ฃ is a stunning example of the scarabs ๐“๐“Šช๐“‚‹๐“‚‹๐“†ฃ๐“ช that were made during this time period. Some Egyptologists state that the scarabs ๐“๐“Šช๐“‚‹๐“‚‹๐“†ฃ๐“ช made during the Hatshepsut ๐“‡ณ๐“ฆ๐“‚“/Thutmosis III ๐“‡ณ๐“ ๐“†ฃ era were some of the finest ever made, and I happen to agree!ย 

Steatite Scarab Ring
Steatite Scarab Ring inscribed with the throne name of pharaoh Thutmosis III

Letโ€™s read some hieroglyphs ๐“Šน๐“Œƒ๐“ช! 

The name ๐“‚‹๐“ˆ– Menkhepperra ๐“‡ณ๐“ ๐“†ฃ translates to โ€œLasting is the Manifestation of Ra.โ€ This cartouche ๐“ ๐“ˆ–๐“ˆ™๐“ท appears twice on the scarab ๐“๐“Šช๐“‚‹๐“‚‹๐“†ฃ! 

๐“‡ณ – Ra

๐“  – Lasting

๐“†ฃ – Manifestation

The word โ€œEternity ๐“†–โ€ also appears on the Scarab ๐“๐“Šช๐“‚‹๐“‚‹๐“†ฃ. 

In the middle of the scarab ๐“๐“Šช๐“‚‹๐“‚‹๐“†ฃ there is also the โ€œGold Falcon/Gold Horus ๐“…‰โ€ symbol which shows a falcon ๐“…ƒ standing on the hieroglyphic symbol for โ€œgold ๐“‹ž.โ€ Usually the Gold Falcon ๐“…‰ is one of the five names of the pharaoh ๐“‰๐“‰ป and is the third part of the royal titularly. Thutmosis IIIโ€™s Gold Falcon name is โ€œ๐“…‰๐“‚ฆ๐“‚‹๐“›๐“ˆ๐“…ฑ๐“›๐“ฆ Djoser Khauโ€ which translates to โ€œSacred of Appearances.โ€ Obviously this full name does not appear on the Scarab ๐“๐“Šช๐“‚‹๐“‚‹๐“†ฃ, but the Gold Falcon ๐“…‰ symbolizes kingship ๐“‡“๐“‡Œ. 

This is my personal photograph and original text. DO NOT repost.ย 

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Egyptian Artifacts

Menat Necklace

This is a picture of a special type of necklace called a menat ๐“ ๐“ˆ–๐“‡‹๐“๐“‹ง. The menat ๐“ ๐“ˆ–๐“‡‹๐“๐“‹ง necklace is unique because it consists of a keyhole shaped piece and a lot of beads ๐“‹ด๐“…“๐“‚ง๐“๐“ฏ๐“ธ๐“ฆ. The beads ๐“‹ด๐“…“๐“‚ง๐“๐“ฏ๐“ธ๐“ฆ on this menat ๐“ ๐“ˆ–๐“‡‹๐“๐“‹ง are made of blue ๐“‡‹๐“น๐“๐“„ฟ๐“ธ๐“ฅ faience ๐“‹ฃ๐“ˆ–๐“๐“ธ๐“ผ and there are some glass ๐“‹ฃ๐“ˆ–๐“๐“ธ๐“ผ beads ๐“‹ด๐“…“๐“‚ง๐“๐“ฏ๐“ธ๐“ฆ near the keyhole piece!ย Blue ๐“‡‹๐“น๐“๐“„ฟ๐“ธ๐“ฅ is my favorite color, so I really love how blue was such a popular color in ancient Egyptian art!

Menat Necklace
A beautiful example of a menat necklace on display at the Metropolitan Museum of Art

The menat ๐“ ๐“ˆ–๐“‡‹๐“๐“‹ง necklace not only appears a lot in Egyptian art, but it was clearly used by real people too! The menat ๐“ ๐“ˆ–๐“‡‹๐“๐“‹ง necklace was often carried or worn by women during religious ceremonies. Similar to a sistrum ๐“Šƒ๐“ˆ™๐“ˆ™๐“๐“ฃ, the menat ๐“ ๐“ˆ–๐“‡‹๐“๐“‹ง necklace was shaken like a rattle. The person would hold the keyhole piece and then shake the menat ๐“ ๐“ˆ–๐“‡‹๐“๐“‹ง to create the rattle-like sound!

The sound produced was meant to appease gods ๐“Šน๐“Šน๐“Šน or goddesses ๐“Šน๐“Šน๐“Šน๐“. Similar to the sistrum ๐“Šƒ๐“ˆ™๐“ˆ™๐“๐“ฃ, the menat ๐“ ๐“ˆ–๐“‡‹๐“๐“‹ง necklace was often associated with Hathor ๐“‰ก, who was the goddess ๐“Šน๐“ of music ๐“‰”๐“‡Œ๐“†ธ (amongst other fun things).ย Hathor ๐“‰ก is often seen in art giving the menat ๐“ ๐“ˆ–๐“‡‹๐“๐“‹ง to a pharaoh ๐“‰๐“‰ป in Egyptian art.

This particular menat ๐“ ๐“ˆ–๐“‡‹๐“๐“‹ง necklace was found at Malqata and is dated to the reign ๐“‹พ๐“ˆŽ๐“ of pharaoh ๐“‰๐“‰ป Amenhotep III ๐“‡ณ๐“ง๐“Ž  (c. 1390 – 1352 BCE). In order to celebrate his Heb Sed Festival ๐“Ž›๐“ƒ€๐“‹ด๐“‚ง๐“๐“Žฑ๐“‡ณ๐“ช, the pharaoh ๐“‰๐“‰ป Amenhotep III ๐“‡ณ๐“ง๐“Ž  built a new palace ๐“‚๐“Ž›๐“๐“‰ฅ๐“‰ which was referred to as โ€œThe House of Rejoicingโ€ at present day Malqata in Egypt ๐“†Ž๐“…“๐“๐“Š–. It would be interesting to know if this menat ๐“ ๐“ˆ–๐“‡‹๐“๐“‹ง was specifically used during his Heb Sed Festival ๐“Ž›๐“ƒ€๐“‹ด๐“‚ง๐“๐“Žฑ๐“‡ณ๐“ช!

This is my personal photograph and original text. DO NOT repost without permission.

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Egyptian Artifacts

Broad Collar and Pomegranate Spoon

Here I am at the Brooklyn Museum with a beautiful ๐“„ค Broad Collar ๐“…ฑ๐“‹ด๐“๐“Žบ๐“‹ and Pomegranate ๐“‡‹๐“ˆ–๐“‰”๐“ ๐“†ญ Spoon ๐“‚๐“‚๐“ƒ€๐“Žบ๐“ˆ™๐“†‘๐“‚ง๐“…ฑ๐“ˆ”! Let’s learn some more about these beautiful ๐“„ค pieces!

Broad Collar and Pomegranate Spoon
Me with the Broad Collar and Pomegranate Spoon at the Brooklyn Museum!

One of the most popular types of jewelry ๐“‚๐“๐“ข amongst the elite – including the gods ๐“Šน๐“Šน๐“Šน, pharaohs ๐“‰๐“‰ป๐“ฆ and royal family is known as the broad collar ๐“…ฑ๐“‹ด๐“๐“Žบ๐“‹. In Middle Egyptian, the word for broad collar was โ€œ๐“…ฑ๐“‹ด๐“๐“Žบ๐“‹ wesekh.โ€ The last symbol of the word (the determinative hieroglyph) could also act as an ideogram be be used to represent the whole word โ€œ๐“‹ wesekh.โ€ย 

This particular broad collar ๐“…ฑ๐“‹ด๐“๐“Žบ๐“‹ was made during the late 18th Dynasty, which is when this style reached peak popularity. Broad collars ๐“…ฑ๐“‹ด๐“๐“Žบ๐“‹๐“ฆ could be made of many different types of materials, including gold ๐“‹ž๐“ƒ‰๐“ƒ‰๐“ƒ‰, but the one shown in this picture are made of blue ๐“‡‹๐“น๐“๐“„ฟ๐“ธ๐“ฅ faience ๐“‹ฃ๐“ˆ–๐“๐“ธ๐“ผ beads ๐“‹ด๐“…“๐“‚ง๐“๐“ฏ๐“ธ๐“ฆ. This broad collar ๐“…ฑ๐“‹ด๐“๐“Žบ๐“‹ is in almost perfect condition! 

A closer view of the Broad Collar and Pomegranate Spoon at the Brooklyn Museum!

Underneath the broad collar ๐“…ฑ๐“‹ด๐“๐“Žบ๐“‹ is actually a spoon ๐“‚๐“‚๐“ƒ€๐“Žบ๐“ˆ™๐“†‘๐“‚ง๐“…ฑ๐“ˆ”! It is not a spoon ๐“‚๐“‚๐“ƒ€๐“Žบ๐“ˆ™๐“†‘๐“‚ง๐“…ฑ๐“ˆ” that was used for eating, but instead used to hold ointment ๐“‹ด๐“Žผ๐“ˆ–๐“ˆ–. The top part of the spoon ๐“‚๐“‚๐“ƒ€๐“Žบ๐“ˆ™๐“†‘๐“‚ง๐“…ฑ๐“ˆ” swivels open! It is fashioned after a pomegranate ๐“‡‹๐“ˆ–๐“‰”๐“ ๐“†ญ, and the spoon ๐“‚๐“‚๐“ƒ€๐“Žบ๐“ˆ™๐“†‘๐“‚ง๐“…ฑ๐“ˆ” part itself is supposed to be a pomegranate ๐“‡‹๐“ˆ–๐“‰”๐“ ๐“†ญ fruit. 

The Middle Egyptian word for โ€œspoon ๐“‚๐“‚๐“ƒ€๐“Žบ๐“ˆ™๐“†‘๐“‚ง๐“…ฑ๐“ˆ”,โ€ is actually translated as โ€œincense spoonโ€ or โ€œcosmetic spoon,โ€ which is what the function of this object seems to be! 

Fun fact: pomegranate ๐“‡‹๐“ˆ–๐“‰”๐“ ๐“†ญ flowers and fruit never appear on the plant ๐“‡๐“…“๐“†ฐ at the same time, so maybe the spoon ๐“‚๐“‚๐“ƒ€๐“Žบ๐“ˆ™๐“†‘๐“‚ง๐“…ฑ๐“ˆ” is representative of the growth from flowers ๐“†ผ๐“…ฑ๐“†ฐ๐“ฆ to fruit or the life cycle of the plant ๐“‡๐“…“๐“†ฐ? We will never know!ย 

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Egyptian Artifacts

Ancient Egyptian Beads

I love ancient Egyptian jewelry ๐“‚๐“๐“ข – especially the beads ๐“‹ด๐“…“๐“‚ง๐“๐“ฏ๐“ธ๐“ฆ! One of the reasons I love it so much are the bright and beautiful ๐“„ค๐“†‘๐“‚‹ colors! It always amazes me how these beautiful ๐“„ค๐“†‘๐“‚‹ colors are probably just as bright today ๐“‡๐“‡‹๐“ˆ–๐“‡ณ as they were thousands ๐“†ผ๐“†ผ๐“†ผ of years ago!ย 

Ancient Egyptian Beads
An ancient Egyptian necklace that is displayed how it was found – just the beads, no string! These beads are dated to the reign of Amenhotep III (18th Dynasty) and are at the MET.

Fun fact: most of the necklaces ๐“ˆ™๐“ƒ€๐“…ฑ๐“‹๐“ฆ that are displayed in museums have been re-strung because over time, the fine threading used to actually string the beads ๐“‹ด๐“…“๐“‚ง๐“๐“ฏ๐“ธ๐“ฆ together decomposes or disintegrates, and just leaves the beads ๐“‹ด๐“…“๐“‚ง๐“๐“ฏ๐“ธ๐“ฆ behind until they are found by archaeologists! 

These beads ๐“‹ด๐“…“๐“‚ง๐“๐“ฏ๐“ธ๐“ฆ have not been restrung into a necklace ๐“ˆ™๐“ƒ€๐“…ฑ๐“‹, instead they are displayed as they were found. I honestly donโ€™t know which way I like better; the reconstructed necklaces ๐“ˆ™๐“ƒ€๐“…ฑ๐“‹๐“ฆ that are restrung, or the necklaces ๐“ˆ™๐“ƒ€๐“…ฑ๐“‹๐“ฆ displayed such as these! 

These beads ๐“‹ด๐“…“๐“‚ง๐“๐“ฏ๐“ธ๐“ฆ were found at Amenhotep IIIโ€™s ๐“‡‹๐“ ๐“ˆ–๐“Šต๐“‹พ๐“‹† palace at Malqata and are dated to his reign ๐“‹พ๐“ˆŽ๐“.  The House of Rejoicing (the name of his palace) and the surrounding villages at Malqata were preserved really well, and it is considered to be one of the most best town sites preserved in Egypt ๐“†Ž๐“…“๐“๐“Š–. 

Letsโ€™s read some hieroglyphs ๐“Šน๐“Œƒ๐“ช! See if you can spot this on the tiles/inlays on the top of the picture ๐“๐“…ฑ๐“! 

๐“‡ณ๐“ง๐“Ž  – Nebmaatra (throne name for Amenhotep III)

๐“…ญ๐“‡ณ – Son of Ra

Do you like ancient Egyptian jewelry ๐“‚๐“๐“ข? Let me know your favorite type!!ย 

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Egyptian Artifacts

Beaded Necklaces from Amarna

๐“„ค๐“†‘๐“‚‹๐“…ฑ๐“ญ๐“‡‘๐“‡‘ – How beautiful this is! Letโ€™s take a closer look at these beautiful ๐“„ค๐“†‘๐“‚‹ beaded necklacesย  ๐“‚๐“๐“ข๐“ช from Amarna ๐“ˆŒ๐“๐“‰๐“‡‹๐“๐“ˆ–๐“Š–!ย 

Beaded Necklaces from Amarna
Beaded Necklaces from Amarna (the MET)

There are many different styles of beads, and I just love how striking the colors are! On these necklaces ๐“‚๐“๐“ข๐“ฆ, the bright yellow beads are in the form of a Uraeus ๐“‡‹๐“‚๐“‚‹๐“๐“†—. A Uraeus ๐“‡‹๐“‚๐“‚‹๐“๐“†— is usually depicted as an upright snake ๐“‡‹๐“‚๐“‚‹๐“๐“†™ and is a symbol of sovereignty, royalty, and divine authority in Egypt ๐“†Ž๐“…“๐“๐“Š–. The Uraeus ๐“‡‹๐“‚๐“‚‹๐“๐“†— is usually associated with the pharaoh ๐“‰๐“‰ป, but in the later time periods also worn by women ๐“Šƒ๐“๐“‚‘๐“๐“๐“ช and certain deities ๐“Šน๐“Šน๐“Šน. 

The reddish/brown colored beads are in the shape of a fly ๐“‚๐“†‘๐“†‘๐“†ฆ! Flies ๐“‚๐“†‘๐“†‘๐“†ฆ๐“ช were seen as an amulet ๐“Š๐“Šช๐“…† of protection and were possibly used to protect the wearer from insect bites. I love the fly ๐“‚๐“†‘๐“†‘๐“†ฆ beads/amulets ๐“Š๐“Šช๐“…†๐“ฆ!ย 

Beaded Necklaces from Amarna
Beaded Necklaces from Amarna (the MET)

There are so many ways to say โ€œnecklaceโ€ in Middle Egyptian, so letโ€™s read some hieroglyphs ๐“Šน๐“Œƒ๐“ช! Here are some different ways to say โ€œnecklaceโ€: 

๐“…ฑ๐“‹ด๐“๐“Žบ๐“‹ broad collar 

๐“ ๐“ˆ–๐“‡‹๐“๐“‹ง necklace (menat)

๐“ƒ€๐“ฒ๐“ƒ€๐“ฒ necklace, collar

๐“‚๐“๐“ข jewelry, necklace (with stone beads)

๐“ˆ™๐“ƒ€๐“…ฑ๐“‹ necklace

๐“ˆ™๐“…ฑ๐“‹ necklace

I chose to use โ€œ๐“‚๐“๐“ขโ€ when writing out this description because this word (pronounced like โ€œatโ€) is the word specifically for a necklace ๐“ˆ™๐“ƒ€๐“…ฑ๐“‹ that has stone beads ๐“‡‹๐“ˆ–๐“‚‹๐“Šช! I figured that was a pretty close description to the artifacts in this display! The Menat ๐“ ๐“ˆ–๐“‡‹๐“๐“‹ง and the broad collar ๐“…ฑ๐“‹ด๐“๐“Žบ๐“‹ are very specific types of necklaces and neither of them are shown in this picture ๐“๐“…ฑ๐“! 

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Egyptian Artifacts Reading Hieroglyphs

“Wide Heart” or “Happiness”

๐“„ซ๐“„ฃ – โ€œBe Happy, โ€œHappiness,โ€ โ€œBe Cheerful,โ€ โ€œJoy,โ€ – or in Middle Egyptian, โ€œWide Heart.โ€ย 

๐“„ค๐“†‘๐“‚‹๐“…ฑ๐“ญ๐“‡‘๐“‡‘ – How beautiful is this piece!? While this piece of jewelry may be unassuming to most who walk past it in the galleries as it is very small ๐“ˆ–๐“†“๐“‹ด๐“…ฉ, it carries such a universal message that has permeated for thousands of years – Happiness ๐“„ซ๐“„ฃ! I LOVE how the actual Middle Egyptian version of the word is โ€œWide Heartโ€ – I think it carries so much meaning in such a little phrase. โ€œAncient Egypt makes my heart wideโ€ sounds cooler than โ€œAncient Egypt brings me joy/happinessโ€ 

I always love seeing Happiness/Joy ๐“„ซ๐“„ฃ written on objects because that is exactly how I felt when I was in a museum and looking at Egyptian artifacts with my Nonno. The only emotion I could feel at the time was joy ๐“„ซ๐“„ฃ and I was so lucky. I would do anything to go to a museum with my Nonno and experience those emotions again. While I do feel immense joy ๐“„ซ๐“„ฃ in museums now, thereโ€™s always a sadness to it as well because I truly miss my Nonno more than anything. I would love a piece like this as a necklace – sometimes we all need a reminder to find joy ๐“„ซ๐“„ฃ! 

๐“„ซ๐“„ฃ๐“, ๐“„ซ๐“๐“„ฃ๐“บ, and ๐“„ซ๐“„ฃ๐“บ are all common variants of the word, that I have seen many times in inscriptions ๐“Ÿ๐“›๐“ฅ too! 

This beautiful ๐“„ค clasp belonged to the princess Sithathoryunet, who is thought to be the daughter ๐“…ญ๐“ of the 12th Dynasty (c. 1887โ€“1813 B.C.E) Pharaoh ๐“‰๐“‰ป Senwosret II ๐“„Š๐“‹ด๐“‚‹๐“๐“Šƒ๐“ˆ–. She is thought to be his daughter ๐“…ญ๐“ because her tomb ๐“‡‹๐“ซ๐“Šƒ๐“‰ is linked to his. Flinders Petrie was actually the one to discover her tomb ๐“‡‹๐“ซ๐“Šƒ๐“‰. Despite being robbed in antiquity, the tomb robbers left a chest full of beautiful ๐“„ค jewelry behind! The clasp is made out of gold ๐“‹ž๐“ƒ‰๐“ƒ‰๐“ƒ‰ and carnelian, which is a stone with a red color. I will speak more about the jewelry in future posts, it is is so beautiful ๐“„ค and I love jewelry!

Since I shared what makes me happy ๐“„ซ๐“„ฃ, Iโ€™d love to hear from all ๐“ŽŸ of you! Share something that makes you happy/your heart wide ๐“„ซ๐“„ฃ! 

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Egyptian Artifacts

“Nefer” Broad Collar

๐“„ค๐“†‘๐“‚‹๐“…ฑ๐“ญ๐“‡‘๐“‡‘ – How beautiful this is! Look at thisย beautiful ๐“„ค broad collarย ๐“…ฑ๐“‹ด๐“๐“Žบ๐“‹!ย 

The broad collar ๐“…ฑ๐“‹ด๐“๐“Žบ๐“‹ was the necklace of choice by both the gods ๐“Šน๐“Šน๐“Šน, the pharaohs ๐“‰๐“‰ป๐“ฆ, and the nobility/wealthy! This broad collar ๐“…ฑ๐“‹ด๐“๐“Žบ๐“‹ is unique because traditionally they were made with faience ๐“‹ฃ๐“ˆ–๐“๐“ธ๐“ผ beads while this particular broad collar ๐“…ฑ๐“‹ด๐“๐“Žบ๐“‹ is made of gold ๐“‹ž๐“ƒ‰๐“ƒ‰๐“ƒ‰ and glass ๐“‹ฃ๐“ˆ–๐“๐“ธ๐“ผ! Fun fact: glass and faience are the same word in hieroglyphs ๐“Šน๐“Œƒ๐“ช: ๐“‹ฃ๐“ˆ–๐“๐“ธ๐“ผ!

If you look closely at this broad collar ๐“…ฑ๐“‹ด๐“๐“Žบ๐“‹, you will see a familiar hieroglyphic ๐“Šน๐“Œƒ๐“ช symbol: ๐“„ค! The โ€œheart and windpipe ๐“„คโ€ symbol is a triliteral phonogram that represents the sound โ€œnfrโ€ which in modern times we pronounce like โ€œnefer.โ€ The word โ€œnfr ๐“„คโ€ translates to โ€œbeautifulโ€ or โ€œgoodโ€ and is a very popular symbol not only in hieroglyphic ๐“Šน๐“Œƒ๐“ช phrases such as titles, but also in names ๐“‚‹๐“ˆ–๐“ฆ! 

So basically, this broad collar ๐“…ฑ๐“‹ด๐“๐“Žบ๐“‹ is just saying โ€œbeautiful ๐“„คโ€ over and over and over again! Maybe the broad collar ๐“…ฑ๐“‹ด๐“๐“Žบ๐“‹ was supposed to bring good ๐“„ค wishes to the wearer, or just make them  even more beautiful ๐“„ค! Isnโ€™t that what nice jewelry is all about, even in modern times?!

The MET has this piece titled โ€œBroad Collar of Nefer Amuletsโ€ and it belonged to one of the foreign wives of pharaoh ๐“‰๐“‰ป Thutmosis III ๐“‡ณ๐“ ๐“†ฃ, as that is the tomb ๐“‡‹๐“ซ๐“Šƒ๐“‰ the piece was found in. This piece is dated to the 18th Dynasty (c. 1504โ€“1450 B.C.E.). 

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Egyptian Artifacts

A Beautiful Broad Collar

โ€œ๐“„ค๐“†‘๐“‚‹๐“…ฑ๐“ญ๐“‡‘๐“‡‘ – How Beautiful This Is!โ€ – I feel like this is the only appropriate phrase to describe this broad collar ๐“…ฑ๐“‹ด๐“๐“Žบ๐“‹ at the MET! I have used this Middle Egyptian phrase to describe broad collars ๐“…ฑ๐“‹ด๐“๐“Žบ๐“‹๐“ฆ in past posts too! I just think they are gorgeous ๐“„ค pieces of jewelry especially this one, because it is so colorful! 

In Middle Egyptian, the word for broad collar was ๐“…ฑ๐“‹ด๐“๐“Žบ๐“‹ (pronounced โ€œwesekh) or simply just the determinative hieroglyph ๐“‹๐“บ could be used for the whole word.

The broad collar ๐“…ฑ๐“‹ด๐“๐“Žบ๐“‹ was the necklace of choice by both the gods ๐“Šน๐“Šน๐“Šน and the pharaohs ๐“‰๐“‰ป๐“ฆ. The broad collar ๐“…ฑ๐“‹ด๐“๐“Žบ๐“‹ reached peak popularity during the 18th Dynasty and this particular one was made during the reign of Akhenatenย ๐“‡‹๐“๐“ˆ–๐“‡ณ๐“…œ๐“๐“ˆ– (c. 1353โ€“1336 B.C.E.).

Broad collars ๐“…ฑ๐“‹ด๐“๐“Žบ๐“‹๐“ฆ could be made of many different types of materials, including gold ๐“‹ž๐“ƒ‰๐“ƒ‰๐“ƒ‰, but the one shown in this picture ๐“๐“…ฑ๐“ is made of colorful faience ๐“‹ฃ๐“ˆ–๐“๐“ธ๐“ผ beads. The beads are each representative of a different plant ๐“‡๐“…“๐“†ฐ! The center row has blue ๐“‡‹๐“น๐“๐“„ฟ๐“ธ๐“ฅ, yellow, green ๐“‡…๐“„ฟ๐“†“๐“›, and red ๐“‚ง๐“ˆ™๐“‚‹๐“…Ÿ cornflowers. Then there are three rows of dates (in yellow, green ๐“‡…๐“„ฟ๐“†“๐“›, and red ๐“‚ง๐“ˆ™๐“‚‹๐“…Ÿ), and the outer beads are white ๐“Œ‰๐“†“๐“‡ณ lotus petals. 

This broad collar ๐“…ฑ๐“‹ด๐“๐“Žบ๐“‹ looks like it is in almost perfect condition, however, the beads were re-strung during modern times! 

Fun Fact: This broad collar ๐“…ฑ๐“‹ด๐“๐“Žบ๐“‹ is actually from the private collection of Howard Carter! 

Categories
Reading Hieroglyphs

Three Golden Bracelets from the Tomb of Three Wives of Thutmosis III

These are three ๐“ผ golden ๐“‹ž๐“ƒ‰๐“ƒ‰๐“ƒ‰ bracelets ๐“‚๐“ ๐“†‘๐“‚‹๐“๐“‡›๐“ช /armlets ๐“„Ÿ๐“‹ด๐“Žก๐“๐“…ฑ๐“ฅ. They were found in the tomb ๐“‡‹๐“ซ๐“Šƒ๐“‰ of three ๐“ผ minor wives ๐“‚‘๐“๐“๐“ช of Thutmosis III ๐“…๐“„ค๐“„ ๐“†ฃ. While some of the inlaid glass is missing, these bracelets ๐“‚๐“ ๐“†‘๐“‚‹๐“๐“‡›๐“ช are in incredible condition. I love how the blue ๐“‡‹๐“น๐“๐“„ฟ๐“ธ๐“ฅ, red ๐“‚ง๐“ˆ™๐“‚‹๐“…Ÿ and gold ๐“‹ž๐“ƒ‰๐“ƒ‰๐“ƒ‰ all looks together!

Inside the bracelets, are the titles and cartouches of Thutmosis III ๐“…๐“„ค๐“„ ๐“†ฃ. The engravings were put inside the bracelet ๐“‚๐“ ๐“†‘๐“‚‹๐“๐“‡› so his name ๐“‚‹๐“ˆ– would always be close to his wives ๐“‚‘๐“๐“๐“ช. I find this cool because even in modern times, itโ€™s very also popular to have engravings with names ๐“‚‹๐“ˆ–๐“ฆ or initials on the backs of rings or bracelets! Itโ€™s incredible to me how certain ideas and styles have persisted through time!

Translation time!

๐“…ญ๐“‡ณ(๐“…๐“„ค๐“„ ๐“†ฃ)๐“†– – โ€œSon of Ra, Thutmosis III*, For all Eternity (or Everlasting)โ€

๐“„ค๐“Šน(๐“‡ณ๐“ ๐“†ฃ)๐“™๐“‹น – โ€œThe Great God, Menkheperra, Given Lifeโ€

*this cartouche (๐“…๐“„ค๐“„ ๐“†ฃ) is a variant of Thutmosis IIIโ€™s birth name. The name ๐“‚‹๐“ˆ– is usually written as (๐“…๐“„ ๐“‹ด) but this particular variant was used after Year 21 ๐“Ž†๐“Ž†๐“บ of his reign. (๐“…๐“„ค๐“„ ๐“†ฃ) translates to โ€œThoth is born, beautiful of formโ€ while the regular birth name cartouche (๐“…๐“„ ๐“‹ด) translates to just โ€œThoth is born.โ€ His throne name (๐“‡ณ๐“ ๐“†ฃ) Menkheperra translates to โ€œLasting is the form of Ra.โ€

Categories
Egyptian Artifacts

Broad Collars

The ancient Egyptians ๐“†Ž๐“๐“€€๐“๐“ช loved jewelry! In Egyptian art, the wealthy and upper class people were always depicted wearing elaborate jewelry as a way to show their status. The gods ๐“Šน๐“Šน๐“Šน and goddesses ๐“Šน๐“Šน๐“Šน๐“ are also often depicted wearing a lot of beautiful ๐“„ค jewelry.

One of the most popular types of jewelry amongst the elite – including the pharaohs ๐“‰๐“‰ป๐“ฆ and royal family is known as the broad collar ๐“…ฑ๐“‹ด๐“๐“Žบ๐“‹. In Middle Egyptian, the word for broad collar was ๐“…ฑ๐“‹ด๐“๐“Žบ๐“‹ (pronounced โ€œwesekh) or simply just the determinative hieroglyph ๐“‹ could be used for the whole word.

Broad Collars at the MET

The broad collar ๐“…ฑ๐“‹ด๐“๐“Žบ๐“‹ was the necklace of choice by both the gods ๐“Šน๐“Šน๐“Šน and the pharaohs ๐“‰๐“‰ป๐“ฆ and it reached peak popularity during the 18th Dynasty. The broad collar ๐“…ฑ๐“‹ด๐“๐“Žบ๐“‹ was also given to people of high rank or officials ๐“‹ด๐“‚‹๐“€€๐“ช as a mark of honor. Broad collars ๐“…ฑ๐“‹ด๐“๐“Žบ๐“‹๐“ฆ could be made of many different types of materials, including gold ๐“‹ž๐“ƒ‰๐“ƒ‰๐“ƒ‰, but the ones shown in this picture are made of faience beads.

Many mummies ๐“‡‹๐“น๐“…ฑ๐“€พ๐“ช have also been found buried wearing the broad collar ๐“…ฑ๐“‹ด๐“๐“Žบ๐“‹! You gotta look good in the afterlife too ๐“‡ผ๐“„ฟ๐“๐“‰!!