EGYPTIAN STEATITE SCARAB BEAD

Ca. 1st Millennium BC. Ancient Egyptian. Steatite scarab with well-modelled head, perforation for suspension and depiction of a male divinity on the reverse. Scarabs, from Latin scarabaeus (“beetle”), which in turn comes from Greek karabos (“beetle”; “crayfish”), were artistic depictions of the Egyptian dung beetle. In Egyptian mythology, these insects were linked to the Sun God Ra, who after his death in the Underworld, was reborn as a scarab. Used as amulets, seals and to fulfil commemorative functions, scarabs were an important element of dress. Their undersides frequently feature hieroglyphic or geometric designs to identify their owners or ward off evil spirits. Due to their small, abstract nature, scarabs cannot normally be closely dated generally. See K. M. Kooney (2008). ‘Scarabs,’ in The UCLA Encyclopaedia of Egyptology, available online at https://escholarship.org/uc/item/13v7v5gd Fair condition. Size: H: 10.8mm, W: 15.1mm; 1.44g. Provenance: Private UK collection; formerly with a USA gallery; imported by Mr. E.E. in the shortly before and after the WW2.