Earrings of Tutankhamun with Duck Heads

It might sound fanciful to suggest that Tutankhamun was especially fond of ducks, yet the evidence from his tomb offers some intriguing hints. Among the many spectacular artefacts found in his burial (jewellery, chariots, furniture, and more) there exist a few duck-themed items (or items associated with waterfowl) that invite speculation about their symbolic or personal importance.

Among the glittering treasures that accompanied Tutankhamun to eternity, this exquisite pair of earrings stands out as perhaps the most beautiful of the four pairs discovered in his tomb. Each features two ducks with gracefully outstretched wings forming a perfect circle, their tiny feet clasping the shen sign; an emblem of eternal protection. The heads are of translucent blue glass, while the wings glimmer with intricate cloisonné inlays of dazzling colour.

Beneath the ducks hang strands of gold and blue glass beads, adorned with five miniature uraei; rearing cobras symbolising divine authority and the vigilant protection of the king. Such details display not only the extraordinary artistry of the royal jewellers, but also the refined taste of a court where symbolism and splendour intertwined.

In Ancient Egyptian thought, the duck was more than a creature of the marshes. It evoked fertility, regeneration, and the gentle renewal of life tied to the waters of the Nile. The duck could even carry subtle erotic associations; a whisper of vitality and desire. Occasionally linked to Amun, “the Hidden One,” who was at times depicted with a duck’s head, the motif may have been chosen to invoke divine protection and rebirth.

Whether worn by the young king in life or fashioned as ornaments for his eternal rest, these earrings reveal the intimate artistry of Tutankhamun’s world: beauty crafted not only for adornment, but for eternity itself.

Materials and Craftsmanship

Fashioned from gold, cloisonné, and blue glass, these earrings epitomise the exquisite skill of the royal jewellers of the 18th Dynasty. Fine strips of gold were carefully shaped to form delicate cells (cloisons) into which coloured pastes or powdered glass were fused by heat, creating the shimmering inlays that form the ducks’ wings. The translucent blue glass used for the heads was a prized luxury, imitating lapis lazuli and produced through the complex art of glassmaking that Egypt had perfected by Tutankhamun’s time.

Gold, beaten to an astonishing thinness, provided both structure and radiance, its surface polished to catch the faintest light. Every detail, from the curling uraei to the minuscule suspension rings, speaks of a master’s hand and a court that celebrated beauty as an expression of divine perfection.

Pierced Ears and Royal Fashion

Tutankhamun’s mummy bears clear evidence of pierced earlobes; a detail long visible in photographs of his unwrapped face. The same can be seen on his golden death mask, where small circular holes pierce the lobes on either side, and even on sculptural representations such as the celebrated lotus head, which also displays this youthful adornment. For many years, Egyptologists assumed that ear-piercing in men was confined to childhood or adolescence, believing that adult males (especially of royal rank) did not wear earrings.

However, discoveries from the 18th Dynasty have challenged that view. Not only was Tutankhamun buried with several pairs of earrings, but the mummy of Thutmose IV also shows pierced ears, suggesting that the practice continued into adulthood, at least within royal or elite circles. These finds reveal that pierced ears were not merely markers of youth but could also signify refinement, divine beauty, or a continuation of childhood purity into eternal life.

Far from a trivial detail, Tutankhamun’s pierced ears link the boy-king to a wider aesthetic and cultural tradition in which ornamentation was both personal and sacred; a symbol of grace carried proudly from this world into the next.

Summary:

Earrings with Duck Heads of Tutankhamun

New Kingdom, 18th Dynasty, reign of Tutankhamun, c. 1332–1323 B.C.
Gold, cloisonné, and blue glass

From the Tomb of Tutankhamun (KV62), Valley of the Kings, West Thebes

Cairo, Egyptian Museum (JE 61969); to be displayed in the Grand Egyptian Museum