Following up on Ancient Egyptian Paper: Papyrus, Parchment & Paper Money, this week we’ll discuss Ancient Egyptian jewelry. From metals such as gold, silver, bronze, to gemstones like turquoise, emerald, carnelian, ancient Egyptians used jewelry for adornment and protection, and for legal authentication.

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Jewelry appears in the archaeological record in Egypt as early as 4500 B.C. Beginning in the prehistoric periods, Egyptians adorned themselves in a variety of embellishments including rings, earrings, bracelets, pectorals, necklaces, crowns, and amulets.

Ancient Egyptians placed great faith in symbolic jewelry like amulets or charms. They believed that amulets endowed the wearer with magical powers of protection, healing and also brought good fortune. Protection by amulets was especially important in the afterlife so amulets were placed on various parts of the mummy during the wrapping process.

Gemstones such as lapis and turquoise were imported and often less available during unstable political periods. Purple amethyst was popular during the Middle Kingdom, while glass was used in some 18th-dynasty jewelry, such as in King Tutankhamun’s pectorals and inlaid mummy mask.

When gold was discovered along the river of Nile, Egyptians created gold mines to extract as much gold as possible. Artisans made amulets, death masks, diadems, ornamental weapons, vessels, and funeral art out of gold to adorn the tombs of pharaohs.

The face masks, made from sheets of gold, and quartz and obsidian for the eyes, had to be accurate so that the soul of the deceased would recognize his body and be able to return to it.

Silver was used to fashion beads as early as the Predynastic Period and remained important for personal ornaments and cult objects in Egypt through Roman times. When silver was introduced into Egypt, it was a more valuable commodity than gold and continued to be rare during the Old Kingdom. Jewelry made of silver was almost always thinner than gold pieces.

Copper was the first metal used by ancient Egyptians and was mined up to 5,000 years ago. The oldest Egyptian artefacts made of copper date to the early fourth century and consist of beads and small tools.

Polychrome glass was used for colorful jewelry and beads, as well as for pottery, in vivid hues of green, red, yellow, and blue. Other gemstones used in ancient Egyptian jewelry included: emeralds, malachite, garnet, carnelian, and obsidian.

The Egyptians held the belief that the scarab as a symbol of rebirth and regeneration. It was essential to have one or more scarabs adorning the deceased in order to ensure reincarnation. The owner's name was inscribed on the stone so that his spirit would know it was theirs.

Although scarab beetles are black, they didn’t usually appear in that color in ancient Egyptian jewelry. The exception to this is the two scarab beetles that were placed on the outside of Tut's mummy and were made of black resin.

Jewelry was worn not only for adornment and protection, but for legal authentication. Each man would have a signet ring which bore his family emblem. Emblems were usually animals such as a griffin, a hawk, a lion, a scorpion, and so forth.

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