BIBLE HISTORY DAILY

Young Girl Discovers Egyptian Scarab

New Kingdom scarab discovered during family walk

The Egyptian scarab. Courtesy Emil Aladjem, IAA.

While walking with her family at Tel Qana near Tel Aviv, a young girl made a fantastic find: a small stone in the shape of a dung beetle with a carving of two scorpions on the bottom. After the family brought it to an archaeologist with the Israel Antiquities Authority (IAA), it was determined that the object was an Egyptian scarab dating to around 1500 BCE, during the New Kingdom period.

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Finding a Scarab

“I was looking down at the ground to find porcupine needles and smooth pebbles,” said 12-year-old Dafna Filshteiner. “I picked up an interesting stone. I showed it to my mother, and she said it was just an ordinary stone or a bead. But then I saw a decoration and stubbornly insisted it was more than that, so we searched on the internet. There, we identified more photos of stones similar to what we had found. We realized that it was something special and immediately called the [IAA].”

While scarabs—often carved in the shape of dung beetles and frequently used as seals—originated in Egypt, they also became popular in the southern Levant with the spread of Egyptian influence. Many scarabs have been found in Israel, some having been imported from Egypt while others were crafted locally to mimic Egyptian styles. “The scarab is indeed a distinct Egyptian characteristic,” said Yitzhak Paz, a Bronze Age expert at the IAA. “Their wide distribution also reached far beyond Egypt’s borders,” however. “It may have been dropped by an important and authoritative figure passing through the area, or it may have been deliberately buried. Since the find was discovered on the surface, it is difficult to know its exact context.”

The bottom of the scarab depicts two scorpions, positioned head to tail. “The scorpion symbol represented the Egyptian goddess Serket, who was considered responsible, among other things, for protecting pregnant mothers,” said Paz. “Another decoration on the amulet is the nefer symbol, which in Egyptian means ‘good’ or ‘chosen.’ There is also another symbol which looks like a royal staff.”

Related reading in Bible History Daily:

Hiker Finds 2,700-Year-Old Scarab Seal

Egyptian Scarab Amulet Unearthed at Sepphoris

Early Christian Amulets: Between Faith and Magic

I Spy: A 3,500-Year-Old Ancient Egyptian Scarab

All-Access members, read more in the BAS Library:

The Scarab: The Idol That Rolls in Dung

Egyptian Pharaoh in Edom

Assyrian Seal Discovered in Galilee