Heart Amulet

For the ancient Egyptians, the heart was the centre of thought and the driver of feelings and actions. Thus, it was the organ, which remembered the deeds done in life, that played a significant role in helping the deceased to reach the afterlife. During the Weighing of the Heart ritual, the heart of the deceased was placed on a scale, while the other pan of the scale held a Maat feather, a symbol of justice. Meanwhile, the deceased made a ‘negative confession’, listing all the sins he/she had not committed. If the scale did not move, the dead person could move on to the afterlife. For this reason, heart amulets were placed near the heart between the mummy bandages to ensure positive responses during the weighing. Heart amulets became widespread after the introduction of the Book of the Dead in the New Kingdom, and played a significant role within grave goods until the end of the Pharaonic period.

Heart amulets as this were typically represented as an ovoid vessel, broader at the top, with a handle-like element on each side, perhaps indicating veins and arteries, and a flared and flattened rim at the top. This amulet also has a loop with a ribbed decoration, for suspension. The object is made of lapis lazuli, a precious material in ancient Egypt, mined in Afghanistan, whose blue colour was the colour of the Nile, which is the source of fertility and regeneration, and thus supported renewal. In addition, it is the colour of the night sky, consequently the colour of the journey of the deceased to the afterlife.