DTC 356 Post 4 : The Eye of Horus

Eye of Horus Wdjet Eye Smithsonian

An interesting object in the collections at the National Museum of Natural History is a small blue amulet of the Egyptian symbol, the “ Eye of Horus”. The amulet itself is made of blue faience, and it is believed to be from the roman period. It is believed to be from Upper Egypt, from a site called Abydos.  The collector Julia Whiting donated the amulet to the museum. While I could not find any background information specifically about this artifact and where it came from, I did read some information about the Eye amulets in general.

These depictions of the eye where often used as protection. This was not only true for the living, but for the dead as well. It was explained that they were placed with mummies. It is a well-known fact that standard grave robbers would break into tombs and steal artifacts that they thought would bring a profit to them. Like many ancient artifacts, these were meticulously crafted out of top materials, making them valuable to grave robbers. This is one way that the artifacts could move about the world.

That being said, standard grave robbers would not have been the only way these artifacts could have been removed. Centuries later, archeologists would be “ discovering “ the tombs, and not only cataloguing and studying them, but also taking there own souvenirs. This is also common, logical  At the museum they can be on display for all to see and learn from them. they also can be digitized and put online so that those who do not live near the museum can see for themselves as well.

http://www.novemberfire.com/shirtspopup/shirtpoppages/nft296s.html

knowledge. Over the years, rules and procedures work to prevent it, but in the beginning it most certainly happened. These artifacts would live in their private collections until they were put into a museum. In the immortal words of the character Indiana Jones “ It belongs in a museum”.

However, this poses some interesting questions. Since undoubtedly the museum did not get it from the original creator, only the person who donated it, where should the artifact actually be? It is definitely not an American Artifact, yet it is in an American museum. This leads into another question, where did the donator receive it from, how did it come into her possession? Perhaps she is the family member of the original archeologists that found it when they explored the tomb. In that case, should she really have been the one to “own” the artifact?  While it is gone from its original location now, whether that is a tomb or some other location, where should it really be kept? Does it belong in America? Should it be returned to Egypt? Unfortunately, I could not answer these questions with research. Beyond the small bit of information the museum provided, there was virtually no more information on this specific artifact. This was true for the museum website, and the greater Internet in general.

http://ip5cases.net/2012/all-seeing-eye-of-horus-iphone-5-cover/

While there may not have been much information on that specific artifact, , and how it is being

dealt with, a quick Google search proves that while the specific amulet may not be miss-represented or represented in an inappropriate way in the museum, often times the symbol it depicts as a whole is. The Google image search for “Eye of Horus” turned up many interesting results. Many were simply drawings of the eye, however, there were some less traditional images. These less traditional results included baseball hats, t-shirts, posters, souvenirs, tattoos, cell phone cases, an eye makeup line (Eye of Horus mascara and eyeliner), and much, much more. As a matter of fact, when one thinks of the stereotypical Egypt, and its symbols, the eye is bound to come up.

            That being said, the original meaning of the symbol is in fact religious. It is a representation of the eye of the Falcon ancient Egyptian sky god Horus. The different parts of the symbol represent different senses. Thought, smell, touch, sight, hearing, and taste are all included in the representation. Due to this, the symbol is also sometimes called the All Seeing Eye. It is also thought of as the representation of the goddess Wdjet. It is a symbol of healing and protection.

            While it was used frequently in ancient Egypt to adorn a variety of different things, it was used within reason, and in a respectful, correct way. Using the symbol on something for western profit in the twenty first century does not fall under that category.  The symbol was never intended for such frivolous uses such as makeup lines, or cell phone cases. The only instance I can think of that would be even close to its intended use would be the tattoos. However even those are most likely used in the incorrect way today. It is important to think about how to deal with artifacts, and where they came from, especially in today's digital world. 

Works Consulted 

Dun, Jimmy . "The Eyes Have It (Eye of Horus and the Eye of Re (Ra)." Tour Egypt. Tour Egypt, n.d. Web. 6 Apr. 2014. <http://www.touregypt.net/featurestories/eyeofhorusandre.htm>.

"Eye Of Horus" Wdjet Eye. n.d. blue faience. Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian. Washington D.C. 

"The Eye." Ancient Egyptian Religion and Mythology;  of Horus (Eye of Ra). Ancient Egypt Online, n.d. Web. 7 Apr. 2014. <http://www.ancientegyptonline.co.uk/eye.html>.