djar-em-rekh:

Amulets of
Ancient Egypt

by Carol Andrews

This
concise and fotographically illustrated book published by the British Museum Press informs about types of
amulets used in Ancient Egypt. They are divided by function and then by
diversity of shapes for each of the functions discussed.

The
chapters cover:

• A short
  introduction to Egyptian amulets
• Amulets of gods, goddesses and sacred animals
• Amulets for protection and aversion
• Scarabs for the living and funerary scarabs
• Amulets of assimilation
• Amulets of powers
• Amulets of offerings, possessions and property
• Materials and their symbolism

The
introduction is well structured and covers the topic in a manner that allows
delving further into it easily. It traces the history of amulets and their heka
related uses from predynastic times onwards trying to give some insight into
the thought behind amulet choices for the living and the dead. Also the
evolution of shapes and function is sketched.

When
writing about the different types of amulets in the subsequent chapters she
illustrates her explanations with objects from the British Museum’s collection(s). Each type of
amulet is illustrated with at least one picture.

The last
chapter explains the use and significance, origin and sometimes frequency of
use of different materials for crafting amulets.

It is well written
with a focus on being accessible to a wide ranged public. Nice quick reference book. Small caveat were one or two inaccuracies concerning fish. Otherwise as far as I could discern up to date (1994).

Carol Andrews was at the time of the publication of the book I acquired Assistant Keeper in the Department of Egyptian Antiquities at the British Museum.