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Source Description
The frog, because of its numerous offspring, was a symbol of fertility. In fact, the hieroglyphic sign for 100,000 was a tadpole. Frog amulets were very popular both in semiprecious stone and in faience, and were worn by women hoping for an easy delivery. Both sexes wore the frog in expectation of a successful rebirth in the afterlife.
Scholar Source Context
Document identity
localId
149884
label
Frog Amulet
core
obj
dtoType
object
pageCount
1
Source metadata
id
149884
contentType
object
title
Frog Amulet
description
The frog, because of its numerous offspring, was a symbol of fertility. In fact, the hieroglyphic sign for 100,000 was a tadpole. Frog amulets were very popular both in semiprecious stone and in faience, and were worn by women hoping for an easy delivery. Both sexes wore the frog in expectation of a successful rebirth in the afterlife.
date
c. 1380–1330 BCE
rights
CC0
rightsUri
CC0
language
en
wikidata
Q60757147
genreSpecific
Amulets
imageCount
1
source
import
dimensionsRaw
Overall: 0.8 x 0.9 cm (5/16 x 3/8 in.)
cul
Egypt, New Kingdom (1540–1069 BCE), Dynasty 18
accession
1980.123
Source extras
tec
polychrome faience
tombstone
Frog Amulet, c. 1380–1330 BCE. Egypt, New Kingdom (1540–1069 BCE), Dynasty 18. Polychrome faience; overall: 0.8 x 0.9 cm (5/16 x 3/8 in.). The Cleveland Museum of Art, Gift of Cyril and Jessica Aldred, 1980.123
collection
Egypt - New Kingdom
inscriptions
inscription
Inscribed "Nefer" (beautiful)
didYouKnow
This frog amulet was made from faience, a fine type of self-glazing ceramic that is characteristically turquoise blue. It is a representation of Heqet, the frog goddess associated with childbirth and fertility.
citations
citation
Cleveland Museum of Art, and Jenifer Neils. T<em>he World of Ceramics: Masterpieces from the Cleveland Museum of Art.</em> Cleveland: The Museum in cooperation with Indiana University Press, 1982.
page_number
Mentioned and reproduced: p. 6, fig. 7
citation
Berman, Lawrence M., and Kenneth J. Bohač.<em> Catalogue of Egyptian Art: The Cleveland Museum of Art.</em> Cleveland, OH: Cleveland Museum of Art, 1999.
page_number
Reproduced and Mentioned: p. 513, cat. no. 407
creditline
Gift of Cyril and Jessica Aldred
updatedAt
2026-05-29 07:43:47.322000
sourceId
149884
dept
Egyptian and Ancient Near Eastern Art
coll
Egypt - New Kingdom
med
polychrome faience
thumbnail_url
image_url
Single page context
seq
1
pageIndex
0
type
photo
mediaId
717132a76d403b2e