Pectoral with Scarab
Description
Object Label: Living persons wore only one or a few amulets at a time, but mummies usually bear many amulets. The Ma’at amulet (no. 2) and heart scarabs (nos. 1, 3, 11), which occurred in many forms, guaranteed a successful judgment of the dead. The amulets of a hand (no. 8), lungs and a windpipe (no. 12), and wadjet-eyes (i.e., “healthy” eyes; no. 4) protected those parts of the body and also had connotations of resurrection and the unity or integrity of the mummy. The enigmatic aper amulet (no. 13) takes the form of the hieroglyph meaning “to be equipped,” perhaps in reference to the mummy’s preparation. The two crowns (nos. 5, 6) were symbols of power. The Heh insignia (no. 7), like the popular ankh-sign, denoted eternal life. Among the living, the frog (no. 9) and possibly also the hare (no. 10) suggested fertility. The amulets of the Four Sons of Horus (no. 15) perhaps served, as they did with canopic jars, to protect various organs of the body. Caption: Pectoral with Scarab, ca. 1539–1295 B.C.E. or later. Faience, 4 1/16 × 4 1/2 × 1 3/16 in. (10.3 × 11.5 × 3 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Charles Edwin Wilbour Fund, 08.480.159. (Photo: Brooklyn Museum)
AI image analysis GPT-5.4-nano
Machine-generated from the object's image on Jul 2026. Not curatorial; treat deities, names, and signs below as the model's best reading, not authority.
Faience pectoral plaque fragment showing a centered scarab motif, with surrounding Egyptian-style geometric and hieroglyph-like markings.
The image depicts a small, flat, rectangular faience pectoral plaque with a teal/green glaze. In the center is an applied scarab form, dark in color (blue-black/gray) with engraved lines suggesting the beetle’s body and legs. The scarab sits within an inner rectangular field framed by lighter raised or incised lines. Around the inner frame and at the top/right/left areas are rectilinear and stepped marks that resemble simplified hieroglyphic elements, though the exact signs cannot be securely identified from the available resolution. No clearly readable cartouche or royal name is visible. There is no legible Greek/Coptic/Arabic text visible. Overall condition appears good: the glaze and edges are intact though there are minor surface wear marks and small chips typical of faience objects.
Cross-references (2)
- BKM-Accession 08.480.159 tier-2
- BKM-Object 3244 tier-2
About this record's data
- From the source institution — accession, description, dimensions, and dating are as catalogued by Brooklyn Museum — Egyptian, Classical, Ancient Near Eastern Art.
- AI-inferred — the image-analysis panel (deities, names, signs) is machine-generated and may be wrong.
- Approximate location — most map points are plotted at the site centroid, not the exact findspot.
- Inferred links — cross-references marked with a match method other than explicit-source-field were matched by us, not stated by the source.