Discover the most popular ancient Egyptian artifacts by browsing our selection of meticulously chosen treasures from all the Egyptian Museums located worldwide.
Egypt is a land known for its rich history, culture, and art. Over the centuries, the country has produced some of the world’s most fascinating and iconic artifacts. These relics are a testament to the ancient Egyptians’ remarkable artistic, engineering, and architectural skills. From the tombs of pharaohs to the pyramids, hieroglyphics, and mummies, ancient Egyptian artifacts represent a unique and mysterious chapter in history and continue to fascinate and inspire contemporary audiences. Each artifact not only carries the legacy of ancient Egypt’s artistry but also represents a wealth of information about the civilization, its beliefs, and cultural practices. Egyptian artifacts continue to capture the imagination of people around the world, and they remain integral to the nation’s identity and pride. Overall, these artifacts offer a remarkable glimpse into an ancient world that still manages to captivate modern minds and set new standards of artistic accomplishments that stand the test of time.
Popular Ancient Egyptian Artifacts
The Golden Mask of King Tutankhamun
Tutankhamun’s golden mask is one of the most well-known and revered artifacts of ancient Egypt, both historically and globally. Tutankhamun’s burial death mask, from the Egyptian pharaohs of the 18th dynasty (1332-1323 B.C.E). The mask, which weighs 11kg (24p) and is made largely of pure gold, is inlaid with blue glass, lapis lazuli, and other semiprecious stones. It was worn by the King’s mummy and covered his head and face; it was found by Howard Carter in 1922 and is commonly recognized as a realistic portrait of the young king; it is now held in the Egyptian Museum and is on display.
Narmer Palette
The Palette of Narmer, which originates from the 31st century BC and includes some of the first known hieroglyphic drawings, is regarded as one of the world’s oldest historical records. It’s basically a 23-inch-long dark green schist stone fashioned into a ceremonial tablet in the style of a shield to commemorate King Narmer’s rise to power. The Royal Ontario Museum in Toronto, Canada, has a reproduction of this sculpture, which shows Narmer winning the battle for the unification of upper and lower Egypt.
Rosetta Stone
The Rosetta Stone is an important ancient Egyptian artifact dating back to the time of Pharaoh Ptolemy V. The Rosetta Stone is a representation of the law that grants the Royalty of this Pharaoh to control people. An irregularly shaped stone with inscriptions written in three different written languages, old Greek, Egyptian hieroglyphics, and Egyptian demotic, all with the same meaning. Rosetta Stone was discovered in 1799 AD by a French officer named Pierre-François Bouchard during Napoleon Bonaparte’s expedition in Egypt and was instrumental in solving the Hieroglyphics riddle for the first time in 2000 years. The name of King Ptolemy is engraved within the cartouche on the Rosetta Stone, and it was this hint that led Francois Champollion to begin deciphering the ancient Egyptian language. It was discovered 35 kilometers north of Alexandria, near the village of Rosetta. The Rosetta Stone is now on exhibit at the British Museum in London. The inscription on the Rosetta Stone is a decree passed by a council of priests. It is one of a series that affirm the royal cult of the 13-year-old Ptolemy V on the first anniversary of his coronation (in 196 B.C.E).
The Bust of Queen Nefertiti
The fascinating bust of Akhenaten’s wife Nefertiti, recognized as one of the best examples of the art forms of all time, is considered a masterwork of ancient Egyptian sculpture. Nefertiti’s name means “beautiful lady has come,” and she had a huge influence on religion and society during the reign of her heretic husband, Pharaoh Akhenaten. The limestone bust has been confirmed as a real portrayal of extreme beauty due to the one-of-a-kind crown she is wearing. It is on display in the Berlin Museum of Modern Art and represents the climax of the Amarna era of Egyptian art.
The Diorite statue of King Khefre {Chephren}
Because it was carved from a single piece of diorite stone, which is the second hardest stone on the planet after diamond, the Statue of King Chephren on exhibit at the Egyptian Museum is one of the most intriguing Ancient Egyptian Artifacts. We have no idea how this statue was created. It is interesting to note that the ancient Egyptians used diorite stone to cut other hard stones, such as granite, for their construction projects. A life-size statue of the 3rd ruler of the 4th Dynasty. During his reign, King Chephren constructed a pyramid in Giza for himself, which ranks second in world size only to the Great Pyramid of Giza, which belonged to his father, King Khufu. Giza’s Valley temple of king Chephren, which is also the king’s mummification temple, housed the statue for centuries under its foundation. Tourists gather at the location where the statue was discovered to toss coins and make wishes. The Great Sphinx of Giza is carved from a single massive piece of limestone rock and depicts King Chephren’s head on a lion’s body. The Ancient Egyptians worshipped the Sphinx and considered him as the living image of God Rehorakhti.
Statuette of King Khufu
The 7.5 (3 inches) ivory statue of King Khufu (Cheops) is one of the tiniest and most precious things ever found in ancient Egypt, and it is the only picture of him ever uncovered. He is regarded as the ruler whose the Great Pyramid of Giza was built for. The statue was unearthed at Abydos’ ancient necropolis on the southern corner of the temple of Osiris and is currently housed in Cairo’s Egyptian Museum. Excavators discovered the statue headless, and after two weeks of digging, they discovered the statue’s head. On the left shoulder of the statue is a serekh name of King Khufu, indicating that the statue is his.
Young Ramses II Statue
Egyptian Pharaoh Ramesses II, wearing a Khepresh crown and holding the Heqa scepter at an early age, is shown in life-size detail on this masterpiece. The statue, which dates back to the 19th Dynasty of the New Kingdom (1279-1213 B.C. ), is presently housed at the Great Egyptian Museum of Turin in Italy, where it has been on display since 1824. Granodiorite stone has been used to cut it out of a single block. The statue was discovered at the Temple of Amon in Karnak. When you look at this statue, you can’t help but notice that the king is wearing the long royal robe and starched kilt that kings wore during wartime. Beautifully preserved, the statue reflects the peak of ancient Egyptian art and beauty and is in superb shape.
Statuette of Amun
weighing about 2 pounds and made of solid gold, this magnificent statuette of Amun is now on display in the Metropolitan Museum. Amun stands in the classic posture, left leg forward. His flat-topped crown, which formerly had two towering gold feathers, is now gone. He has the gods’ braided beard and a scimitar over his breast. On New Kingdom pylons and temple walls, Amun-Re is commonly shown giving the king a scimitar, thereby awarding military success. This gold figurine is an incredibly rare specimen of the expensive material sculpture that formerly graced temple sanctuaries. The figure might have been atop a scepter or standard. A tripartite loop is seen on the top of Amun’s cap, indicating that he was hung and so worn by a temple celebrant or a divinity figure. The Egyptians identified gold’s brightness and gloss with the sun, and the gods’ skin was said to be gold. The soft body modeling, tiny waist, and other elements are typical of Third Intermediate Period art. However, it is also a time of immense creative success. Metalwork (gold, silver, and particularly bronze) was of exceptional quality, as this Amun figure attests.
Ancient Egyptian Artifacts (examples)
- An amulet is a magical or miraculous object, generally, in the shape of a ring, necklace, or bracelet, that is worn on the person who believes it has the magical or miraculous power to protect the person who wears it.
- The key of life “Ankh” is held by the gods and goddesses of ancient Egypt who gave it to Kings, Queens, and the Egyptian nation
- The Benben, also known as the pyramidion, is located at the very top of the Egyptian pyramid.
- Canopic jars are vessels that store internal organs that have been removed from the body during the process of mummification.
- The canopic chest is a type of chest. The four Canopic jars were kept together in the same chest.
- A cartonnage is a collection of Papyrus or linen soaked in plaster that is formed around the body of the deceased and used for mummies, coffins, and other ceremonial purposes.
- A cenotaph is a monument or an empty grave built-in memory of a person or group of people whose bones are located elsewhere.
- The crook is a symbol of pharaonic power as well as a representation of the god Osiris, who is the ruler of the underworld in Egyptian mythology.
- Faience is a type of glasswork that includes objects such as amulets and other trinkets.
- A fake door is an artistic portrayal of a door, which is a frequent architectural element in tombs and is used as a decorative element.
- The flail is a symbol of pharaonic strength and the ruler of the underworld, Osiris, and is found in the tomb of Ramses II.
- An item of funeral use from the time of the Naqada period till the end of the Early Dynastic Period is the Flint Knife.
- The funeral cone is a tiny cone constructed of clay that was placed at the entrance of any tomb chapel. It was almost solely employed at the Theban necropolis, where it was placed at the entrance of any tomb chapel.
- Unknown to us, an Imiut Fetish is a religious object used in funerary rituals that are fundamentally composed of stuffed headless animal skin, usually, that of a feline or a bull, tied by the tail to an upright pole, which terminates in a lotus flower and inserted into a stand. The origin and purpose of the Imiut Fetish are unknown to us.
- A microlith is a little piece of ancient Egyptian stone.
- In addition to being worn around the neck, Menat is also employed as a musical instrument, specifically as a metal rattle.
- Naos is a religious shrine, specifically a movable shrine for the purpose of transporting a god.
- Ostracon is a pottery sherd, a limestone sherd, and a writing substance that was once utilized.
- A cosmetic Palette is a slab of stone used for the preparation of cosmetics, which may or may not be ornamented.
- Papyrus is a substance manufactured from papyrus reeds that have been used as a writing and painting medium for thousands of years.
- The Saqqara Bird is a model of a wooden bird.
- The sarcophagus is a burial container for a deceased person, and it is most typically carved in stone.
- The Egyptian scarab is an amulet or seal in the shape of an abstract dung beetle, and it’s popular in Egypt.
- A Senet is a popular board game that has been around for quite some time.
- Ushabti is figures placed in a tomb as substitutes for the tomb owner in the next world are referred to as Shabti in Arabic.
- The Great Sphinx is a limestone statue that serves as Egypt’s lone protector.
- The Pyramids are enormous buildings with a square or triangular base and sloping sides that culminate in a point at the summit that was erected of limestone as a royal mausoleum in ancient Egypt. They also served as the official symbol of Egypt for endless generations during their time of construction and use.
- In archaeology, a stele is a slab of stone or wood that can be found in a variety of forms and sizes and is frequently inscribed with words, reliefs, or paintings. There are two varieties of stele: Boundary Memorial Stele and Monumental Stele.
Discover Ancient Egyptian Artifacts in Egypt.
We’ve put together a variety of Egypt tour packages that include visits to ancient temples, tombs, and museums, as well as all of Egypt’s other attractions. On one of our Nile Cruise Tours, visit Luxor and Aswan for their breathtaking sites, and Cairo for its world-class museums and infinite ancient Egyptian antiquities.
