Mysterious and exotic, Egypt has always intrigued historians, archeologists and everyone else. The rituals, the pyramids and the hieroglyphs of ancient Egyptian culture have enthralled the world for centuries, but it came to a crescendo in the late 1700s through the early 1900s, with Egyptian motifs finding their way into the decorative arts including jewelry. So why this attraction to the ancient land? There were a number of events that brought Egypt to the world’s attention.
The Beginning of Egyptology
In 1798 Napoleon Bonaparte invaded Egypt putting the nation into the spotlight. While it’s hard to imagine, it was not only soldiers who went into battle with Napoleon. He was also accompanied by engineers, artists and archeologists whose job was to study everything about Egypt. This was the beginning of the field of Egyptology, which is the scientific study of ancient Egypt.
In 1799 a black basalt slab with ancient writing was discovered by a French soldier in the town of Rosetta. It had writing in Greek, Egyptian hieroglyphics and Egyptian demotic. It became known as the Rosetta Stone, which helped scientists discover the meaning of the hieroglyphics, a written language that had not been used for 2,000 years. Because there was a section in Greek, the Rosetta Stone, was translated in 1822 and was a major milestone in the field of Egyptology as it allowed scholars to decipher the hieroglyphs, giving them a deeper look into the ancient culture.
Another major global event involving Egypt, was the construction of the Suez Canal, which was built between 1859 and 1869. The world watched with bated breath as the new water way that created a shorter maritime route between Europe and Asia took shape, opening to much fanfare on November 17, 1869.
Egypt’s Artistic Influence on Jewelry
Artists were also using Egyptian motifs in decorative arts and jewelry. One of the most popular themes was the scarab, a type of beetle that symbolizes rebirth and renewal. The god, Horus, depicted as a human with a falcon head, cats, revered for their magical power and cobras for protection were some of the most important designs. Lotus flowers, and pyramids were also favored decorations.
Boucheron, Mellerio and others were creating jewelry with Egyptian motifs that were showcased at the Paris Exposition of 1867. The revivalist jewelers of the mid-1800s, Castellani, Fontenay and Giuliano also included some Egyptian revival pieces in their collections.
King Tut’s Tomb Discovered
Egypt continued to pique the interest of the general public for many more years, but it hit another climax when British archeologist Howard Carter discovered King Tut’s tomb on November 4, 1922, unlocking a treasure trove of objects and jewelry. The public couldn’t get enough of anything Egyptian. Cartier, Van Cleef & Arpels, Tiffany & Co. and other jewelers began creating pieces in the Art Deco style with Egyptian themes.
Tiffany & Co., used ancient Egyptian faience, which is a form of ceramic. The company also made scarabs from favrile glass. Both Cartier and Van Cleef & Arpels made wide, flat plaque bracelets with Egyptian motifs, shimmering with diamonds and onyx or colored gemstones telling a story of the ancient world. Cartier used antique artifacts from Egypt in gold settings inspired by the flora, architecture and mythology of the country.
A Traveling Exhibition
Interest in Egypt began to settle after World War II. However, there was a renewed interest when the wildly successful exhibition “The Treasures of Tutankhamun” traveled to the world’s major museums between 1972 and 1981. Visitors stood in line for hours to see the exhibition and it was reported that 8 million people around the world saw the fifty treasures presented to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the discovery of King Tut’s tomb. This time, however, much of the jewelry that was inspired by Egypt was costume, with the Ankh, the Egyptian symbol of life, a popular motif. Kenneth Jay Lane, Trifari, Monet, Miriam Haskell and Whiting and Davis were major makers of this style. Today, both fine vintage jewelry and costume jewelry with Egyptian motifs are highly collectible for those with a flair for the exotic.
Top of Page: Gold, amethyst, demantoid garnet and enamel brooch, created by Theodore B. Starr, circa 1900, from the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, gift of Jacqueline Loewe Fowler, 2013, public domain, courtesy WikiCommons.
Authored by Amber Michelle