Egypt, Late Period, ca. 715 to 330 BCE. This scarab pectoral has a very dense, glassy, red faience. It has eight drill holes so that it could be sewn onto the bandages of a mummy; it would have been accompanied by two red faience wings. The gold paint that outlines the shape of the beetle is probably not original. As you might remember from films such as The Mummy, the scarab beetle was a powerful symbol of resurrection in the Egyptian belief system, and placing it as a pectoral on a mummy would have been intended to guarantee a safe passage to the afterlife. Size: .25" L x 1.75" W x 2.25" H (0.6 cm x 4.4 cm x 5.7 cm) Provenance: Ex: H. Berk collection, Chicago, IL