Selection of Canaanite Scarab Amulets with Hunting Scene

A selection of Egyptian Canaanite scarab amulets featuring a stylised obverse with faint incisions to mark the prothorax and elytra. The reverse features a stylised hunt scene with three anthropomorphic figures. Above them is a stylised branch and zoomorphic figure, possibly a wild animal. Scarab A has been finely carved from steatite, while Scarab B is moulded from Egyptian blue faience. Both pieces have been pierced longitudinally for suspension.

Date: Circa 1215-650 BC
Period: New Kingdom Period, Third Intermediate Period
Provenance: Ex private UK collection, Mr. DP, formerly acquired from a London ADA dealership, from 2004-2012.
Condition: Very fine condition. Earthly encrustations to the surface.
Choice of item A B
Clear selection

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SKU: CF-014 Category: Tags: , , ,

The scarab beetle was an exceedingly popular symbol in the art of Ancient Egypt, thought to represent the sun god, Ra. Ancient Egyptians believed that the scarab beetle rolling its ball of dung across the desert mirrored the journey of the sun across the sky from day to night. As the beetle laid its eggs within the dung, it became a symbol of rebirth and regeneration. These scarab beetle amulets were made in various forms, such as heart scarabs, commemorative scarabs, and scarab amulets, thus catering to different functions. Scarab amulets were believed to have magical rejuvenating properties, used by both the living and the dead.

Egyptian blue was a synthetic blue pigment created by the ancient Egyptians and used from as early as the 4th Dynasty, up until the Roman period. For the Egyptians, the colour blue was associated with the sky, with the waters of the Nile and with the gods. It was associated with life and the rejuvenation that came from the yearly inundation and the primeval flood. Egyptian blue, less expensive than natural blue pigments, was used to colour faience, to paint scenes on wall paintings, to colour wood and stone.

Steatite, also known as soapstone, was one of the oldest stones used in ancient Egyptian civilization, used in both Predynastic and Dynastic periods. In its natural state, steatite is a very soft stone, meaning that it can very easily be worked with even the most basic of tools to create very fine results. However, once fired, steatite would become very hard wearing and resistant to damage, whilst still retaining its carved detail, making it an ideal material for amulets, beads, seals, and smaller statues.

Choice of item

,

Culture

Faience

Region

Stone

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