Scarab with Inscription Related to Ptah

Unknown

ca. 1740–1640 B.C. · Glazed steatite · Egyptian Art

The hieroglyphs on this late Middle Kingdom scarab form an inscription saying that Ptah is satisfied, Ptah-hotep. Ptahhotep was a common personal name during the Middle Kingdom, but the inscription is here more likely meant as a blessing related to the god Ptah. On either side of the inscription are decorative papyrus plants with one straight and one drooping stem. Based on the characteristics of its back and sides, this scarab was manufactured at a workshop active during mid to late Dynasty 13 (ca. 1750-1640 B.C.). It was probably located at a site that is now known as Tell el-Dab’a, in the eastern Nile Delta.

Artist

Unknown

Date

ca. 1740–1640 B.C.

Medium

Glazed steatite

Department

Egyptian Art

Credit line

Gift of Helen Miller Gould, 1910