Scarabs

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Scarabs are small stamps in the shape of a dung beetle. They are mainly made of stone or clay, and were common in ancient Egypt. The ancient Egyptians believed that the dung beetle, which comes out of a pile of dung, emerged out of thin air and resembled a godly act, and it therefore symbolized revival and renewal. They also identified it with the sun.

Scarabs were attributed magical qualities and were used as part of worship rituals and as small idols, amulets, and jewelry. The scarabs found in the land of Israel testify to Egyptian control of the region in ancient times and its influence on the local culture.

The first scarab that you see on the left was found in Kfar Yehoshua by a girl named Rina Porat. She recalls the event, at age 95:

“Next to Kfar Yehoshua, there is another tel called Tel Yitzhakiya, and it is also filled with antiquities[...] and I used to walk around and collect there too. One day, I sat down on the ground to rest a bit, in the sun, and I saw next to me what I thought was a dung beetle that was left in the sun and turned whitish. I picked it up and saw that it was actually ivory, it wasn’t a real beetle. Underneath it, when you turn it over, there was an inscription... The upper part is a perfect dung beetle. If you look at it with a magnifying glass, you can see the little protrusions on the legs, like a beetle has. It’s simply amazing. The inscription underneath is the stamp of a queen.

The body itself has two holes where a string was apparently threaded and it became a ring.”

The scarab is made of steatite, and it indeed bears the name of the Egyptian queen Hatshepsut, who was the eldest daughter of King Thutmose the first.  

Because she was a woman, she was not entitled to inherit the throne. Very cleverly, she took advantage of the period when a worthy candidate was not yet found, and she ruled Egypt for 20 years. In order to establish her status, she adopted prominent royal symbols, some of which can be seen on the scarab:

At the top part of the decoration, there are three hieroglyphics that spell out Hatshepsut’s royal name.

The bottom part of the decoration features four hieroglyphics that spell out one of the queen’s titles - “Ruler of two lands”, namely the Nile Valley and the Delta. One of the king of Egypt’s primary responsibilities was to ensure unity within the kingdom. Etching this title on the scarab was a declaration that she was a strong ruler who unified Egypt.