Scarab
ḫprrWhat it actually depicts
A dung beetle, seen from above.
What it meant
Coming into being. The word for the beetle, the god Khepri and the verb 'to come into existence' share a root.
Where you see it
As seals, in their thousands, with names and designs on the flat underside. As the heart scarab placed over the chest of a mummy. Winged, across the breast of a coffin.
What gets said that is wrong
Not a symbol of luck or of the beetle itself. The Egyptians watched young beetles emerge from a ball of dung and read it as matter generating itself, which is why the sun at dawn is a scarab. The heart scarab is more specific still: it is inscribed with Spell 30B, telling the heart not to give evidence against its owner at the judgement.
Carried by
Other symbols