Scarab Tie Pin (Modern)

Inscriptions

Text: scrolls and poorly formed hieroglyphs

Label

There was an explosion of interest in Ancient Egypt following Napoleon Bonaparte’s invasion of Egypt from 1798 to 1801. While Napoleon led the campaign to protect and extend French trade interests, his army was accompanied by 167 scientists who surveyed and recorded their discoveries in Egypt. Their published findings fueled popular interest in Ancient Egypt, sometimes called “Egyptomania,” which was revitalized in 1922 when Howard Carter discovered Tutankhamen’s tomb. Wealthy Westerners flocked to Egypt as vacationers or amateur archaeologists, bringing back both antiquities and forgeries.

This case features a selection of scarabs, an insect that featured in Ancient Egyptian art as a symbol of the sun and regeneration. Their simple form allowed for creation in a variety of sizes and materials. It is unclear if any of the original owners of the objects in this case purchased the scarabs knowing that they were modern reproductions or forgeries rather than true antiquities. Can you tell which is which?

From the 2025 exhibition Stone, Sand, and Clay: Connecting Cultures in the Ancient Mediterranean, curated by Ashley B. Offill, Curator of Collections

Exhibition History

Stone, Sand, and Clay: Connecting Cultures in the Ancient Mediterranean, Hood Museum of Art, Dartmouth College, Hanover, New Hampshire, June 7, 2025 - Ongoing

Provenance

Collected by Lewis Parkhurst (1856-1949, Class of 1878), in Egypt, 1912; given to Ernest Fox Nichols (1869-1924), Dartmouth Physics Professor (1898-1903); Dartmouth President (1909-1916), about 1912; bequeathed to his wife, Katherine William West Nichols (1864-1950), 1924; given to Richard Parkhurst (1894-1991, Class of 1916), Winchester, Massachusetts, about 1924; given to Dartmouth College, 1956; transferred to present collection, 1967.

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Subjects