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Amulet of Amen-Re as a ram
Nubian
Napatan Period, reign of Piankhy (Piye) to Tahar
743–664 B.C.
Findspot: Nubia (Sudan), Meroe (Beg.), W 493
Medium/Technique
Faience
Dimensions
Length: 1.3 cm (1/2 in.)
Credit Line
Harvard University—Boston Museum of Fine Arts Expedition
Accession Number23-3-40
NOT ON VIEW
CollectionsJewelry, Ancient Egypt, Nubia and the Near East
ClassificationsJewelry / Adornment – Amulets
DescriptionAmulets of rams' heads topped by a solar disk and uraeus are thought to represent the god Amen-Re in his ram form. Amen-Re was Egypt's supreme deity in the New Kingdom and later, and was among the most important deities in Napatan and Meroitic Nubia. Flat-backed amulets of the god in ram form were especially popular in Nubia. This example is well made of bright green, strongly glazed faience. There is a hole through the neck for stringing.
ProvenanceFrom Meroe, Beg. W. 493. 1923: excavated by the Harvard University–Boston Museum of Fine Arts Expedition; assigned to the MFA in the division of finds by the government of Sudan.