Winged Scarab Amulet

Winged Scarab Amulet

An item at Metropolitan Museum of Art

This winged scarab consists of three pieces: an actual scarab beetle and two separately made wings. The wings are not those of a beetle, but those of a bird, as is apparent by their shape and the indication of individual feathers. Each piece features several small holes that were used to fasten the winged scarab to the wrappings of a mummy. Winged scarabs, meant to guarantee the rebirth of the deceased, were very popular funerary amulets.

Egyptian Art

An exhibit at Metropolitan Museum of Art

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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.