Scarab ring of Sithathoryunet

Scarab ring of Sithathoryunet

An item at Metropolitan Museum of Art

This superb example of an early ring was formed from gold and the beetle’s wing cases, thorax and head were inlaid with semi-precious stones. In the Middle Kingdom (ca. 2030-1650 B.C.), scarab beetles were the preferred design for a ring bezel as the scarab, a symbol of the sun gold Re, emerged as a popular amulet type. Thin gold wire was used to create a ring’s shank and was attached to the bezel in different ways, although most involved wrapping the ends of the wire neatly around the shank in a tight coil as can be seen here. The underside of this ring’s bezel is uninscribed.

Egyptian Art

An exhibit at Metropolitan Museum of Art

Scarab ring of SithathoryunetScarab ring of SithathoryunetScarab ring of SithathoryunetScarab ring of SithathoryunetScarab ring of Sithathoryunet

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.