Shank of a cylinder amulet

An item at Metropolitan Museum of Art

This interesting tiny element is the central portion of an imitation cylinder amulet. Cylinder amulets are specific to the Middle Kingdom (Dynasty 12-13, ca. 1981-1650 B.C.) and almost exclusively known from women’s tombs. Their function remains speculative because they are neither represented in imagery nor discussed in ancient records. In this example, both ends are lost, but the surviving dowel was created by stringing disks of alternating turquoise and lapis lazuli, separated by thinner ones of gold, over a thin rod to create a pleasing striped pattern.

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