Egyptian Jewellery – Symbolizing Gods and Amulets

Egyptian jewellery stands apart from the others in its unique design motifs and interesting carvings. Ancient Egyptians gave a lot of importance to Jewellery decoration - gold, bronze and precious stones are commonly used in Egyptian jewels.

PHOTO BY FLICKR.COM/BOLIYOU/

Egyptian Jewellery - Remarkable designs and motifs

Egyptians, both men and women, wore jewellery in the ancient times. Amulets were a common type of Egyptian jewellery worn by all Egyptians irrespective of their hierarchical status. Egyptian jewellery was not limited to amulets - pendants, head jewellery, bracelets, collars, anklets and others were also popular. One particularly interesting form of jewellery was the thin delicate lace-like wires of silver and gold used for making extraordinary designs of necklaces and bands.The motifs on the Egyptian jewellery were not only for decorative purpose but also because it had some significance. It is common to find scarab, ankh, cartouche are a few of the designs found in the jewels during excavation.

Significance of Ancient Egyptian Jewellery

In ancient Egypt, craftspeople skilled in making fine jewellery had workshops located close to temples and palaces and designed collars, beaded strings, bracelets and an assortment of jewellery for the Pharaohs as well as for religious purposes. Copper, silver, gold, quartz, turquoise, lapis, garnet, amethyst, alabaster was used in making magnificent pieces of jewellery. In ancient Egyptian jewellery, the emphasis was given on the colors of the stones as they had some kind of religious significance - green colored stones symbolized fertility, life and joy, blue was the color that represented heaven, ocean, creation and rebirth, and so on.One aspect of ancient Egyptian jewellery was that the craftspeople used colored glass in the place of precious or semi-precious stones because it is much easier to carve and design on glass.

Egyptian Necklace Designs

The Menit necklace consists of a front piece with several beads stringed together and a counter piece to balance in the back. This necklace is an important ceremonial jewel in religious ceremonies and is associated with the Goddess Hathor. It was usually worn or carried by Queens when they performed the role of priestesses in temples. The famous Egyptian queen, Cleopatra is depicted wearing a collar necklace strung with gold and other beads and scarabs carved design stones.Egyptian necklaces and other jewellery has inspired several designers across the world - as a result it is possible to find stunning replicas of the original designs in gold, silver and other metals for people who aspire to feel the magic and charm of Egyptian designs.Photo Source : flickr.com/boliyou/