Grasshopper Amulet

Amulet of a grasshopper made of lapis lazuli. The grasshopper, like the scarab, was a common insect motif for the ancient Egyptian. It was used as a hieroglyph, a seal, an amulet, a symbol of beauty, and an illustration of life along the Nile. The image of the grasshopper can be both favorably used to describe the multitudinous Egyptian army and negatively applied to enemy forces.

Grasshopper also has a positive metaphor by compare the army of Egyptian king with locust in their multitude. The Grasshoppers’ swarms could consist of billions of locusts covering several hundred square kilometers, and they were capable of traveling great distances in a single day.

The Grasshopper mentioned in the Pyramid Texts, Coffin texts and Book of the Dead. It is also appear in the New kingdom texts.

In the Ptolemaic Period the grasshopper appear in the texts with new purpose. That is representing the core of this paper. This all mean that the ancient Egyptians notice the behavior of that insect and connects between it and some religious thoughts. That what will this paper discuss throw examine number of texts. Egyptian grasshopper and Egyptian Locust are both correct as common names.

In ancient Egypt, lapis lazuli was a favorite stone for amulets and ornaments such as scarabs. Afghanistan was the source of lapis for the ancient Egyptian and Mesopotamian civilizations, as well as the later Greeks and Romans.

Length: 4.8 cm. Dates to the Roman Period, ca. 30 BC-476 AD. Now in the Private Collection.