Crocodile amulet

An item at Metropolitan Museum of Art

Crocodiles were dangerous animals, but Sobek, probably the divinity depicted in this amulet, was a benevolent water deity. The Nile issuing from his sweat made the valley productive, and as a fertility god he was linked to the myth surrounding rebirth in the afterlife. The fine quality of this piece suggests it was a temple offering.

Egyptian Art

An exhibit at Metropolitan Museum of Art

The Met collection of ancient Egyptian art consists of approximately 30,000 objects of artistic, historical, and cultural importance, dating from about 300,000 BCE to the 4th century CE. A signifcant percentage of the collection is derived from the Museum's three decades of archaeological work in Egypt, initiated in 1906 in response to increasing interest in the culture of ancient Egypt.

Metropolitan Museum of Art