Faience scarab with modelled carapace and legs folded to the side of the body; pierced for suspension. To the underside is a figure of a striding horse and hieroglyphs which read “Perfect god, Lord of the Two Lands” Third Intermediate Period, 1070 – 664 BC,
15mm long

In Ancient Egypt, horses were never used for labour, but were a symbol of royal power. It is with the introduction of the horse by the Hyksos that chariots also make an appearance, used mainly for war and royal processions, as seen on the reliefs from Amarna.

For similar see The Israel Museum, Jerusalem, accession number 76.31.3143

Provenance: Purchased during the Second World War by Major G.A.D Gordon (Royal Army Medical Corps) from Sayad Molattam, a dealer in antiquities based at Luxor Hotel Street. Mr Gordon's personal war diaries, which are now held in the Museum of Military Medicine in Aldershot, date his stay in Luxor from the 21st of February to the 1st of March 1942.