Sacred Animals of Ancient Egypt Gallery
By Robert Partridge
Last updated 2011-02-17
Scarab beetle
The small scarab or dung-beetle collects animal dung, rolls it into a ball, then lays its eggs in this ball. The Egyptians imagined a huge scarab beetle rolling the ball of the sun across the sky, which led to an association of the beetle with the sun god Ra. A representation of a scarab beetle can often be seen on amulets made to protect the wearer against evil.
The Egyptian name for the scarab was Kheper, and it appears in many royal names, as in this example, the Cartouche of King Kheperkare, Senuseret I.
Hands on History: Ancient Britain
Hands on History: Roman Britain
BBC iD
BBC iDBBC navigation
BBC links
BBC © 2014 The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites. Read more.
This page is best viewed in an up-to-date web browser with style sheets (CSS) enabled. While you will be able to view the content of this page in your current browser, you will not be able to get the full visual experience. Please consider upgrading your browser software or enabling style sheets (CSS) if you are able to do so.
