By far the most important amulet in ancient
Egypt was the scarab, symbolically as sacred to
the Egyptians as the cross is to Christians.
Based upon the dung beetle, this sacred creature
forms a ball of dung around its semen and rolls
it in a large ball over the sand dropping it into its
burrow. The female lays her eggs on the ground
and covers them with the excrement ball that is
consumed by the larvae that emerge in the
following days as if miraculously reborn. In the
life cycle of the beetle, the Ancient Egyptians
envisioned a microcosm of the daily rebirth of
the sun. They imagined the ancient sun god
Khepri was a great scarab beetle rolling the sun
across the heavens. The scarab also became a
symbol of the enduring human soul as well,
hence its frequent appearance in funerary art.
Scarabs of various materials form an important
class of Egyptian antiquities. Such objects
usually have the bottoms inscribed with designs,
simultaneously functioning as both amulets and
seals. Though they first appeared in the late Old
Kingdom (roughly 2575–2130 B.C.), scarabs
remained rare until Middle Kingdom times (circa
1938-1600 B.C.) when they were fashioned in
great numbers. This specific type of scarab,
called a “heart scarab” is one of the most
fascinating types. During the mummification
process, all the major organ would be removed
and place in canopic jars. This imposing amulet
would have been placed on the throat of the
mummy, on the chest, or over the heart as a
substitute. Some were worn by the deceased on
a chain or a cord, hung around the neck, or
mounted in a gold setting as a pectoral. Clearly,
the spiritual importance of such is evident. The
heart of the deceased would be reborn in the
afterlife just as the Egyptians thought the
offspring of the beetle emerged from the ball of
dung and just as the sun was reborn each day,
dragged across the sky by the great scarab god
Khepri. Overall, the scarab is a potent symbol
for the glories of Ancient Egypt as a whole. In
our hands, we hold a tangible reminder of the
mythology, religion, and funeral rites of this
civilization that continue to fascinate mankind
even today.
- (PF.5819)
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