Jewelry

Lotus shaped pendant of vizier Imhotep. Egyptian Museum of Turin. S. 5108

Lotus pendant of vizier Imhotep

A lotus flower shaped pendant once belonged to the Vizier Imhotep, a high official in the royal court of King Thutmose I. Excavated by Ernesto Schiaparelli and Francesco Ballerini from his tomb (QV46), Valley of the Queens, Thebes. The lotus was shown throughout Egypt in tombs and temples to symbolize the union of Upper and...

Egyptian blue faience necklace decorated with wadjet eye

Necklace decorated with wadjet eye

Thirteen separate protective wadjet eye amulets, made from Egyptian faience in molds, decorate this necklace. The most popular of all Egyptian amulets was the wadjet eye, which was worn to promote health and well-being. The mythological origin of this symbol is rooted in the struggle between Horus, who was the rightful heir to the throne...

Gold Signet Ring

Gold Signet Ring of Neferibre

Gold signet ring of a “Priest of Isis of Khufu” Neferibre, i.e. a priest of the temple of Isis at Giza. The bezel is oval shaped with the inscribed area being slightly raised leaving an oval border. Because this ring bears a cartouche of King Khufu, it was once world famous as the actual signet...

Winged Scarab Pectoral with the Throne Name of Tutankhamun

Pectoral with the Throne Name of Tutankhamun

This is a masterpiece of pectoral from the collection of Tutankhamun. It is a pectoral decorated in a complex way: the central part of the pectoral which represents the throne name (or prenomen) of the king, Nebkheperure, consists in the middle of a large lapis lazuli scarab. Below it is the hieroglyphic sign “neb”, which...

Winged Scarab Pectoral of Tutankhamun

Winged Scarab Pectoral of Tutankhamun

This beautiful winged scarab pectoral illustrates the throne name of King Tutankhamun, “Neb- khepreu-re.” The central element is the scarab “Khepri” made of a fine piece of lapis lazuli, and three strokes of plural “sign in hieroglyphs” below it. Between the forelegs of the scarab, the risen sun disk “Re” is depicted. The pectoral is...

Earrings of Tutankhamun with Duck Heads

Earrings of Tutankhamun with Duck Heads

This pair of earrings is the most beautiful of the four pairs discovered in the Tomb of Tutankhamun. The ducks with outstretched wings form a circle and its feet hold the shen sign. The head is made of translucent blue glass and the wing is fashioned in cloisonné. Under the duck hang gold and blue...

Girdle with cowrie shells of gold

Girdle with cowrie shells of gold

The girdle with golden cowrie shells could have been worn by a small woman. It was slipped over the head and arms to rest on the widest part of her hips and to cross the lowest part of her abdomen. Such girdles were commonly depicted on the little dolls of wood or faience often found...

Egyptian Blue Winged Scarab

Egyptian Blue Winged Scarab Amulet

Molded winged scarab amulet of blue glassy faience, with separate wings, of a type that was mass-produced in the first millennium BC. Flat and schematically modeled, it was intended to be incorporated into a beadwork mummy shroud. Mounted together with fabric backing. This scarab is rather coarsely modeled, although every detail of the body is...

Ancient Egyptian frog ring

Ancient Egyptian frog ring

The frog ring is made of Egyptian blue, which was a vibrant blue pigment, considered to be the first synthetically-produced pigment, composed of quartz sand, a copper compound, and calcium carbonate. The color blue was highly prized in ancient Egypt and the creation of a synthetic pigment allowed artists to produce imitations of the precious...

Pectoral of Princess Mereret

Pectoral of Princess Mereret

This necklace with a pectoral had once adorned the figure of Princess Mereret, the daughter of King Senusret III and sister of his successor Amenemhat III. It bears a cartouche containing the coronation name of Amenemhat III as decoration. Represented as two falcon-headed sphinxes, the king smites his enemies. Above, the vulture-goddess, Nekhbet, is shown...