Ask the Scholar

Document scope · 7 pages
obj
Scholar
Ask about this object, its catalog metadata, its source description, or the page inventory. For page-specific OCR and visual context, open one of the page chats.

Source Description

The ancient Egyptians believed that the dung beetle, the Scarabaeus sacer, was one of the manifestations of the sun god. Representations of these beetles were used as amulets, and for ritual or administrative purposes. Amulets with oval base and half-ovoid back representing other animals are named scaraboids. This scaraboid displays the representation of a crouching calf. The calf is facing to the right, the head as well as the tail raised and bent back to the center of the back. The figure fills the whole oval space; head, tail and extremities are very close to the body giving a compact and balanced impression. The unusual height of the scaraboid conveys the idea that the calf is crouching on top of a rock or pedestal. The base has a symmetrically long-oval shape. The bottom shows the figure of a squatting divine child, which has the finger to the mouth, an ankh-sign (meaning "life") is in front of his face, a lotus plant with bud hanging down above his knees, and an nb-basket below his body. The figure of the child is executed in sunk relief, the high, slim waist, as well as the long neck and head make it likely that the piece was created in the Amarna or early Post-Amarna Period; the layout is well organized, the figure of the child centered, and only the nb-basket is a little small. An oval line frames the arrangement. The calf-scaraboid with divine child on the bottom has a renewal connotation. The calf represents the daily reborn youth (sun god) of the celestial cow, and the child represents probably not only the solar child, but also the king Akhenaten.

Scholar Source Context

Document identity
localId
39367
label
Scaraboid with Crouching Calf
core
obj
dtoType
object
pageCount
7
Source metadata
id
39367
contentType
object
stage
normalized
title
Scaraboid with Crouching Calf
description
The ancient Egyptians believed that the dung beetle, the Scarabaeus sacer, was one of the manifestations of the sun god. Representations of these beetles were used as amulets, and for ritual or administrative purposes. Amulets with oval base and half-ovoid back representing other animals are named scaraboids. This scaraboid displays the representation of a crouching calf. The calf is facing to the right, the head as well as the tail raised and bent back to the center of the back. The figure fills the whole oval space; head, tail and extremities are very close to the body giving a compact and balanced impression. The unusual height of the scaraboid conveys the idea that the calf is crouching on top of a rock or pedestal. The base has a symmetrically long-oval shape. The bottom shows the figure of a squatting divine child, which has the finger to the mouth, an ankh-sign (meaning "life") is in front of his face, a lotus plant with bud hanging down above his knees, and an nb-basket below his body. The figure of the child is executed in sunk relief, the high, slim waist, as well as the long neck and head make it likely that the piece was created in the Amarna or early Post-Amarna Period; the layout is well organized, the figure of the child centered, and only the nb-basket is a little small. An oval line frames the arrangement. The calf-scaraboid with divine child on the bottom has a renewal connotation. The calf represents the daily reborn youth (sun god) of the celestial cow, and the child represents probably not only the solar child, but also the king Akhenaten.
provenance
Henry Walters, Baltimore, 1929 [mode of acquisition unknown]; Walters Art Museum, 1931, by bequest.
date
1351-1334 BCE (New Kingdom, Dynasty 18, Amarna)
rightsUri
CC0
language
en
genreSpecific
Precious Stones & Gems
amulets
imageCount
7
pageCount
7
source
import
dimensions
units
cm
width
0.8
height
1.1
depth
1.6
dimensionsRaw
H: 5/16 x W: 7/16 x L: 5/8 in. (0.8 x 1.1 x 1.6 cm)
Source extras
cul
Egyptian
dynasty
18th Dynasty
reign
Amenophis IV/Akhenaten (1351-1334 BC)
med
light beige faience with green-blue glaze
creator_ids
6182
collection_ids
EGY
exhibition_ids
none
Page inventory
seq
1
type
photo
mediaId
79908011e91db65a
hasOcr
no
hasDescription
no
seq
2
type
photo
mediaId
9bf893ec599d75e2
hasOcr
no
hasDescription
no
seq
3
type
photo
mediaId
a3bd2e2625cceec0
hasOcr
no
hasDescription
no
seq
4
type
photo
mediaId
7accf264105493b6
hasOcr
no
hasDescription
no
seq
5
type
photo
mediaId
7a2b9ac0f64c4049
hasOcr
no
hasDescription
no
seq
6
type
photo
mediaId
587b1ea1249a323f
hasOcr
no
hasDescription
no
seq
7
type
photo
mediaId
5399ff62bcfb87aa
hasOcr
no
hasDescription
no