Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1913-03-28
EGYPTIAN AMULETS
Extent of Their Use, Their sisnifi-
cance-"The Evil Eye"

Professor Flinders Petrie addressed
a meeting yesterday of the members
of the Manchester Oriental Associa-
ton and the Manchester Egyptian
Association at Manchester University.
Professor Petrie, whose subject was
'Amulets, dealt particularly with
Egyptian amulets (eharms). The
prevalence of amulets was, he said,
by no means equal among all peoples.
Amulets were very much valued by
the TaSmananS. They were also
still greatly valued by the Arabs The
whole subject of amulets was strong
ly Semitic. Both in classical and
modern times the Italian nation was
perhaps most addicted to amulets in
every form. In some races they
were practically unknown, as among
certain of the Algerians. Further
north, in the Morse literature, he did
not remember having come across
single mention of amulets The
amulet belonged to a low grade of in
stitution, because it meant that q
person mad some belief in natural law
but an extremely weak sense of what
was cause and effect Professor
Flinders Petrie divided the Egyptian
amulets into five classes. In the first,
they were representative of parts of
the body or of ideas connected with
certain aspects of mind; the second,
Iof symbolic figures. In a third class
they conveyed the idea of property A
fourth and higher class was that of
written charms, and the fifth, which
was a great class. was that of gods.
Showing by lantern slides a great
number of illustrations of the different
lamulets, Professor Flinders Petrie
gave running description of them,
with comments on their significance
He showed that in the first class there
were many Egyptian amulets OF faces,
eyes, ears, and the heart, the latter
chiefly worn by the dead. In the Sec
ond. which included amulets of the
frog. the fly, and the jackal. he ex-
planned that the first was the emblem
of fecunditY, the second of activity,
and the third of watchfulness; the
humanheaded bird represented the
soul. The square was used in the
amulets as an emblem of recitude, and
was always associated with the plum
met, which represented equilibrium
Describing amulets of the third, or
property class, Professor Flinders Pc
trie pointed out that comb amulets
only appeared in the Roman period.
Some amulets bore simply the name of
the person. Seal rings were emblems
of the possession of property. He
showed some amulets of the crescent
which was found in Italy-and one in
which the crescent was combined with
the Christian symbol of the cross.
From amulets bearing figures and in
scriptions he came to the written
charm. Professor Flinders Petrie de-
scribed an amulet of knotted cord as
having two ideas connected with it.
1t was said that every wish of the
person using it was confirmed by tying
a knot at the same time that the wish
was made, and it also prevented the
wish from flying away. Probably this
was one of the primitive forms of the
rosary. Touching lightly on amulets
worn to avert the influence of 'the
evil eye" he said that pieces of shell
Were worn for this purpose on the
forehead African women and girls
still wore a disk in this manner. One
curious class of amulets, and rare
one, consisted of a figure of the hui
man bust Coming to the Sphinx and
the animal gods, the lecturer showed
pictures of the amulets which repre-
scented the sacred bull and the cow,