Object Description
A fine Ancient Egyptian scarab modelled naturalistically in red carnelian. The obverse is curved and largely left smooth, with subtle definition around the head, eyes, and clypeus. The sides of the piece are deeply carved to depict the legs. The underside displays criss-cross grooves imitating the folded tibiae of the scarab. The carnelian shows beautiful hues of red, orange and brown which flow into each other. Naturalistically rendered scarabs and scaraboids, such as this beautiful example, were usually carved from precious and semi-precious stones and were found in tombs dating from the Late period onwards, usually placed on top of different parts of the mummy.
Date: Circa 664-332 BC
Period: Late Period