Creative Commons License
Creative Commons License
Creative Commons License
Creative Commons License
Creative Commons License
Scarab with Crowns and Cobras Design
This steatite scarab has a flat underside with a vertically and horizontally arranged design with the combination of two lower Egyptian crowns and four cobras with raised upper bodies on baskets. The design of the back is detailed with finely incised lines and regular line flow. The proportions of the top are well balanced. The piece is simply made with good workmanship.
The scarab functioned as an amulet with kingship connotations. The amulet refers to all-inclusive divine protection, royal power, and perfection. The red crown symbolizes not only the royal aspect but also magical power, and strengthens the protective function of the amulet. The scarab originally would have been mounted or threaded.
Inscription
Provenance
Provenance (from the French provenir, 'to come from/forth') is the chronology of the ownership, custody, or location of a historical object.
Henry Walters, Baltimore, 1929 [mode of acquisition unknown]; Walters Art Museum, 1931, by bequest.
Geographies
Palestine
(Place of Origin)
Egypt (Place of Origin)
Measurements
H: 3/8 x W: 1/2 x L: 3/4 in. (0.9 x 1.3 x 1.9 cm)
Credit Line
Acquired by Henry Walters, 1929
Location in Museum
Not on view
Accession Number
In libraries, galleries, museums, and archives, an accession number is a unique identifier assigned to each object in the collection.
In libraries, galleries, museums, and archives, an accession number is a unique identifier assigned to each object in the collection.
42.33