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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.This scarab has a bottom inscription with a vertical cartouche containing the name of King Thutmose I. The royal cartouche is combined with a large bee and a very small sun disc; an oval line frames the whole inscription.The highest point of the back is the elytron (wing cases). Double lines separate pronotum (dorsal plate of the protorax) and elytron, as well as the wing cases. The incised lines arge thick, and the line flow regular. The semicircular head is flanked by quarter-spherical eyes, which are separated from the head with double lines. The trapezoidal side plates have outer borderlines, and a large clypeus (front plate) is marked. The sides show deeply carved extremities in natural form. The round-oval base is symmetrical.The scarab is longitudinally pierced, was originally mounted or threaded, and used as an amulet. It should secure royal authority (cartouche) and divine (solar) kingship (bee) for this ruler, and provide a private owner with the royal patronage of the current ruler.The combination of a large bee with a small sun disk behind its body is rare. The round-oval forms of the scarab, as well as the shape of the bee with very long curved feelers, are typical for the early 18th Dynasty.
Scholar Source Context
Document identity
localId
80010
label
Scarab from Egyptian-Style Necklace
core
obj
dtoType
object
citationUrl
pageCount
6
Source metadata
id
80010
contentType
object
stage
normalized
title
Scarab from Egyptian-Style Necklace
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.This scarab has a bottom inscription with a vertical cartouche containing the name of King Thutmose I. The royal cartouche is combined with a large bee and a very small sun disc; an oval line frames the whole inscription.The highest point of the back is the elytron (wing cases). Double lines separate pronotum (dorsal plate of the protorax) and elytron, as well as the wing cases. The incised lines arge thick, and the line flow regular. The semicircular head is flanked by quarter-spherical eyes, which are separated from the head with double lines. The trapezoidal side plates have outer borderlines, and a large clypeus (front plate) is marked. The sides show deeply carved extremities in natural form. The round-oval base is symmetrical.The scarab is longitudinally pierced, was originally mounted or threaded, and used as an amulet. It should secure royal authority (cartouche) and divine (solar) kingship (bee) for this ruler, and provide a private owner with the royal patronage of the current ruler.The combination of a large bee with a small sun disk behind its body is rare. The round-oval forms of the scarab, as well as the shape of the bee with very long curved feelers, are typical for the early 18th Dynasty.
provenance
Henry Walters, Baltimore, 1903 [mode of acquisition unknown]; Walters Art Museum, 1931, by bequest.
date
1504-1492 BC (New Kingdom)
citationUrl
rightsUri
CC0
language
en
genreSpecific
Gold, Silver & Jewelry
necklaces
imageCount
6
pageCount
6
source
import
dimensions
units
cm
width
1.5
height
1.2
depth
8
dimensionsRaw
H: 9/16 x W: 1/2 x D: 3 1/8 in. (1.5 x 1.2 x 8 cm)
Source extras
inscriptions
[Translation] Aa-kheper-ka-Re
/ Solar King.
dynasty
18th Dynasty
reign
Thutmosis I (1504-1492 BC)
med
faience with green-blue glaze
creator_ids
6182
collection_ids
EGY
exhibition_ids
2513
Page inventory
seq
1
type
photo
mediaId
790f9df28a14ee28
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no
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no
seq
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photo
mediaId
a814bdde112b17ea
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no
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no
seq
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type
photo
mediaId
a62ab2fd2b18f727
hasOcr
no
hasDescription
no
seq
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type
photo
mediaId
098f00bca797d598
hasOcr
no
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no
seq
5
type
photo
mediaId
7ba3098a66eb8112
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no
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no
seq
6
type
photo
mediaId
8102089368306ba4
hasOcr
no
hasDescription
no