Usekh collar

Broad Collar of Wah, 1981–1975 BC; faience, linen thread; Metropolitan Museum of Art

Broad collar of Senebtisi, 1850–1775 BC; faience, gold, carnelian and turquoise; Metropolitan Museum of Art

Broad Collar, 1479–1425 B.C; gold, carnelian, obsidian, glass; Metropolitan Museum of Art

Broad Collar, ca. 1336-1327 B.C., ca. 1327-1323 B.C., or ca.1323-1295 B.C.; faience; Brooklyn Museum

As early as the Old Kingdom (c. 2670–2195 B.C.), Egyptian artisans fashioned images of deities, kings, and mortals wearing broad collars made of molded tubular and teardrop beads. The Usekh or Wesekh is a personal ornament, a type of broad collar or necklace, familiar to many because of its presence in images of the ancient Egyptian elite. Deities, women, and men were depicted wearing this jewelry. One example can be seen on the famous gold mask of Tutankhamun. The ancient word wsẖ can mean "breadth" or "width" in the Ancient Egyptian language and so this adornment is often referred to as the broad collar.

The usekh broad collar was wrapped around and supported by the neck and shoulders. It is typically adorned with closely placed rows of colored stone beads, or it is made entirely of metal. The collars were connected with clasps of gold.

Over time, the broad collar went through many different variations of form. These could be attributed to shifting mythological perspectives, or perhaps due to geographical movement across Egypt.

A scene in the Fourth Dynasty tomb of Wepemnofret at Giza connects the usekh collar with dwarves and the deity Ptah. Bernd Scheel has argued that Ptah, who is sometimes depicted wearing the broad collar, protects the deceased through the collar and that dwarves had access to that protective magic, because of their work making these types of collars. In the Fifth Dynasty tomb chapel of Akhethotep (originally located at the Saqqara burial ground, but now in the Louvre), one scene distinguishes between two types of collars: the broad collar and the šnw or "encircling" collar.

Significance

Usekh was seen as a symbol of protection and was mentioned in the rituals of opening the mouths and ritualizing divine statues. In the temple of Abydos Seti I in the hall of Ra-Horakhte there is an image of the pharaoh offering necklaces and pectorals to the gods. This ritual was probably part of the worship service. Usekh could also resemble Atum, who embraced Shu and Tefnut to tell them his Ka. Therefore, putting on the usekh was symbolically equivalent to touching the hands of a god. Usekh thus had the same meaning as the vulture with outspread wings on the sarcophagus of Thutmose I.

From the time of the New Kingdom, the usekh also appears in the form of amulets (which today is denoted by the Greek term aegis/egis) with the head of a god, animal or pharaoh. However, such amulets are more likely to depict female deities. In some cases, divine pairs were depicted, such as the united Onuris and Tefnut. Such usekhs are found not only with mummies, but also as chain links, rings, and earrings. Small amulets were also made for the dead.

The depiction of the heads of gods with usekh were already found on the standard and foreposts of the stern of the divine boat to protect the cult statues carried outside the temples during festive processions. Thus, the aegis symbolized the deity, and the usekh was merely an ornament.

See also

• Clothing in ancient Egypt