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<em>"Marriage Scarab" of Amunhotep III and Queen Tiye</em>, ca. 1390–1353 B.C.E. Faience, 1 1/8 x 1 15/16 x 2 3/4 in. (2.8 x 5 x 7 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Charles Edwin Wilbour Fund, 37.475E. Creative Commons-BY (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, 37.475E_top_PS2.jpg)
"Marriage Scarab" of Amunhotep III and Queen Tiye, ca. 1390–1353 B.C.E. Faience, 1 1/8 x 1 15/16 x 2 3/4 in. (2.8 x 5 x 7 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Charles Edwin Wilbour Fund, 37.475E. Creative Commons-BY (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, 37.475E_top_PS2.jpg)
<em>"Marriage Scarab" of Amunhotep III and Queen Tiye</em>, ca. 1390–1353 B.C.E. Faience, 1 1/8 x 1 15/16 x 2 3/4 in. (2.8 x 5 x 7 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Charles Edwin Wilbour Fund, 37.475E. Creative Commons-BY (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, 37.475E_top_PS2.jpg)

"Marriage Scarab" of Amunhotep III and Queen Tiye, ca. 1390–1353 B.C.E. Faience, 1 1/8 x 1 15/16 x 2 3/4 in. (2.8 x 5 x 7 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Charles Edwin Wilbour Fund, 37.475E. Creative Commons-BY (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, 37.475E_top_PS2.jpg)

<em>"Marriage Scarab" of Amunhotep III and Queen Tiye</em>, ca. 1390–1353 B.C.E. Faience, 1 1/8 x 1 15/16 x 2 3/4 in. (2.8 x 5 x 7 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Charles Edwin Wilbour Fund, 37.475E. Creative Commons-BY (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, 37.475E_bottom_PS2.jpg)

"Marriage Scarab" of Amunhotep III and Queen Tiye, ca. 1390–1353 B.C.E. Faience, 1 1/8 x 1 15/16 x 2 3/4 in. (2.8 x 5 x 7 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Charles Edwin Wilbour Fund, 37.475E. Creative Commons-BY (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, 37.475E_bottom_PS2.jpg)

<em>"Marriage Scarab" of Amunhotep III and Queen Tiye</em>, ca. 1390–1353 B.C.E. Faience, 1 1/8 x 1 15/16 x 2 3/4 in. (2.8 x 5 x 7 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Charles Edwin Wilbour Fund, 37.475E. Creative Commons-BY (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, 37.475E_front_PS2.jpg)

"Marriage Scarab" of Amunhotep III and Queen Tiye, ca. 1390–1353 B.C.E. Faience, 1 1/8 x 1 15/16 x 2 3/4 in. (2.8 x 5 x 7 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Charles Edwin Wilbour Fund, 37.475E. Creative Commons-BY (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, 37.475E_front_PS2.jpg)

<em>"Marriage Scarab" of Amunhotep III and Queen Tiye</em>, ca. 1390–1353 B.C.E. Faience, 1 1/8 x 1 15/16 x 2 3/4 in. (2.8 x 5 x 7 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Charles Edwin Wilbour Fund, 37.475E. Creative Commons-BY (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, 37.475E_back_PS2.jpg)

"Marriage Scarab" of Amunhotep III and Queen Tiye, ca. 1390–1353 B.C.E. Faience, 1 1/8 x 1 15/16 x 2 3/4 in. (2.8 x 5 x 7 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Charles Edwin Wilbour Fund, 37.475E. Creative Commons-BY (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, 37.475E_back_PS2.jpg)

<em>"Marriage Scarab" of Amunhotep III and Queen Tiye</em>, ca. 1390–1353 B.C.E. Faience, 1 1/8 x 1 15/16 x 2 3/4 in. (2.8 x 5 x 7 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Charles Edwin Wilbour Fund, 37.475E. Creative Commons-BY (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, 37.475E_right_PS2.jpg)

"Marriage Scarab" of Amunhotep III and Queen Tiye, ca. 1390–1353 B.C.E. Faience, 1 1/8 x 1 15/16 x 2 3/4 in. (2.8 x 5 x 7 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Charles Edwin Wilbour Fund, 37.475E. Creative Commons-BY (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, 37.475E_right_PS2.jpg)

<em>"Marriage Scarab" of Amunhotep III and Queen Tiye</em>, ca. 1390–1353 B.C.E. Faience, 1 1/8 x 1 15/16 x 2 3/4 in. (2.8 x 5 x 7 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Charles Edwin Wilbour Fund, 37.475E. Creative Commons-BY (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, 37.475E_left_PS2.jpg)

"Marriage Scarab" of Amunhotep III and Queen Tiye, ca. 1390–1353 B.C.E. Faience, 1 1/8 x 1 15/16 x 2 3/4 in. (2.8 x 5 x 7 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Charles Edwin Wilbour Fund, 37.475E. Creative Commons-BY (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, 37.475E_left_PS2.jpg)

<em>"Marriage Scarab" of Amunhotep III and Queen Tiye</em>, ca. 1390–1353 B.C.E. Faience, 1 1/8 x 1 15/16 x 2 3/4 in. (2.8 x 5 x 7 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Charles Edwin Wilbour Fund, 37.475E. Creative Commons-BY (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, 37.475E_SL1.jpg)

"Marriage Scarab" of Amunhotep III and Queen Tiye, ca. 1390–1353 B.C.E. Faience, 1 1/8 x 1 15/16 x 2 3/4 in. (2.8 x 5 x 7 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Charles Edwin Wilbour Fund, 37.475E. Creative Commons-BY (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, 37.475E_SL1.jpg)

<em>"Marriage Scarab" of Amunhotep III and Queen Tiye</em>, ca. 1390–1353 B.C.E. Faience, 1 1/8 x 1 15/16 x 2 3/4 in. (2.8 x 5 x 7 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Charles Edwin Wilbour Fund, 37.475E. Creative Commons-BY (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, 37.475E_NegA_SL4.jpg)

"Marriage Scarab" of Amunhotep III and Queen Tiye, ca. 1390–1353 B.C.E. Faience, 1 1/8 x 1 15/16 x 2 3/4 in. (2.8 x 5 x 7 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Charles Edwin Wilbour Fund, 37.475E. Creative Commons-BY (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, 37.475E_NegA_SL4.jpg)

<em>"Marriage Scarab" of Amunhotep III and Queen Tiye</em>, ca. 1390–1353 B.C.E. Faience, 1 1/8 x 1 15/16 x 2 3/4 in. (2.8 x 5 x 7 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Charles Edwin Wilbour Fund, 37.475E. Creative Commons-BY (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, 37.475E_NegB_SL4.jpg)

"Marriage Scarab" of Amunhotep III and Queen Tiye, ca. 1390–1353 B.C.E. Faience, 1 1/8 x 1 15/16 x 2 3/4 in. (2.8 x 5 x 7 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Charles Edwin Wilbour Fund, 37.475E. Creative Commons-BY (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, 37.475E_NegB_SL4.jpg)

<em>"Marriage Scarab" of Amunhotep III and Queen Tiye</em>, ca. 1390–1353 B.C.E. Faience, 1 1/8 x 1 15/16 x 2 3/4 in. (2.8 x 5 x 7 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Charles Edwin Wilbour Fund, 37.475E. Creative Commons-BY (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, 37.475E_NegC_SL4.jpg)

"Marriage Scarab" of Amunhotep III and Queen Tiye, ca. 1390–1353 B.C.E. Faience, 1 1/8 x 1 15/16 x 2 3/4 in. (2.8 x 5 x 7 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Charles Edwin Wilbour Fund, 37.475E. Creative Commons-BY (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, 37.475E_NegC_SL4.jpg)

<em>"Marriage Scarab" of Amunhotep III and Queen Tiye</em>, ca. 1390–1353 B.C.E. Faience, 1 1/8 x 1 15/16 x 2 3/4 in. (2.8 x 5 x 7 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Charles Edwin Wilbour Fund, 37.475E. Creative Commons-BY (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, CUR.37.475E_bottom.jpg)

"Marriage Scarab" of Amunhotep III and Queen Tiye, ca. 1390–1353 B.C.E. Faience, 1 1/8 x 1 15/16 x 2 3/4 in. (2.8 x 5 x 7 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Charles Edwin Wilbour Fund, 37.475E. Creative Commons-BY (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, CUR.37.475E_bottom.jpg)

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"Marriage Scarab" of Amunhotep III and Queen Tiye

Egyptian, Classical, Ancient Near Eastern Art

On View: Egyptian Orientation Gallery, 3rd Floor
In the first eleven years of his reign, Amunhotep III issued more than two hundred large scarabs (beetle-shaped amulets) inscribed with descriptions of important events, such as a wild-cattle hunt or the building of an artificial lake. Of these commemorative scarabs, fifty-six list the king’s complete titles, the boundaries of the empire, and Queen Tiye’s title and parents’ names. This formal statement of Tiye’s lineage and her official link to Amunhotep III have led most Egyptologists to call these objects “marriage scarabs” even though they do not mention the royal union.
MEDIUM Faience
  • Place Made: Egypt
    • DATES ca. 1390–1353 B.C.E.
    DYNASTY Dynasty 18
    PERIOD New Kingdom
    DIMENSIONS 1 1/8 x 1 15/16 x 2 3/4 in. (2.8 x 5 x 7 cm)  (show scale)
    COLLECTIONS Egyptian, Classical, Ancient Near Eastern Art
    ACCESSION NUMBER 37.475E
    CREDIT LINE Charles Edwin Wilbour Fund
    CATALOGUE DESCRIPTION Blue faience scarab, commemorating the marriage of Amenhotep III with Queen Tiy. The inscription on the underside is inlaid with bluish-white glaze. There are additional inscriptions on two sides, under the legs of the beetle – right) name of Queen Tiy; left) throne name of Amenhotep III. Probably sent to dignitaries of Egypt as announcements. Condition: Good, except for the blowholes in glaze surface, and the wearing away of the bluish white glaze in the hieroglyphs.
    EXHIBITIONS
    MUSEUM LOCATION This item is on view in Egyptian Orientation Gallery, 3rd Floor
    CAPTION "Marriage Scarab" of Amunhotep III and Queen Tiye, ca. 1390–1353 B.C.E. Faience, 1 1/8 x 1 15/16 x 2 3/4 in. (2.8 x 5 x 7 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Charles Edwin Wilbour Fund, 37.475E. Creative Commons-BY (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, 37.475E_top_PS2.jpg)
    IMAGE top, 37.475E_top_PS2.jpg. Brooklyn Museum photograph, 2009
    "CUR" at the beginning of an image file name means that the image was created by a curatorial staff member. These study images may be digital point-and-shoot photographs, when we don\'t yet have high-quality studio photography, or they may be scans of older negatives, slides, or photographic prints, providing historical documentation of the object.
    RIGHTS STATEMENT Creative Commons-BY
    You may download and use Brooklyn Museum images of this three-dimensional work in accordance with a Creative Commons license. Fair use, as understood under the United States Copyright Act, may also apply. Please include caption information from this page and credit the Brooklyn Museum. If you need a high resolution file, please fill out our online application form (charges apply). For further information about copyright, we recommend resources at the United States Library of Congress, Cornell University, Copyright and Cultural Institutions: Guidelines for U.S. Libraries, Archives, and Museums, and Copyright Watch. For more information about the Museum's rights project, including how rights types are assigned, please see our blog posts on copyright. If you have any information regarding this work and rights to it, please contact copyright@brooklynmuseum.org.
    RECORD COMPLETENESS
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    <em>"Marriage Scarab" of Amunhotep III and Queen Tiye</em>, ca. 1390–1353 B.C.E. Faience, 1 1/8 x 1 15/16 x 2 3/4 in. (2.8 x 5 x 7 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Charles Edwin Wilbour Fund, 37.475E. Creative Commons-BY (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, 37.475E_top_PS2.jpg)

    TAGS

    scarab
    blue
    faience glaze
    marriage
    bead
    jewelry
    amulet
    queen
    Tiye
    Amenhotep III
    faience
    titulary
    royal
    New Kingdom
    royal women
    Beetle Amulet
    Inscribed
    Glazed
    18th Dynasty
    Stamp
    Seal
    hieroglyphs
    New York Historic Society Collection
    Dynasty XVIII
    Dynasty 18
    Eighteenth Dynasty
    Egypt
    ca. 1390-1353 B.C.E.
    Beetle
    Document
    Scarb, Stamps and Sealings
    Purplish blue
    Text
    Hyreoglyphs
    Elizabeth Riefstahl

    TAGS

    scarab
    blue
    faience glaze
    marriage
    bead
    jewelry
    amulet
    queen
    Tiye
    Amenhotep III
    faience
    titulary
    royal
    New Kingdom
    royal women
    Beetle Amulet
    Inscribed
    Glazed
    18th Dynasty
    Stamp
    Seal
    hieroglyphs
    New York Historic Society Collection
    Dynasty XVIII
    Dynasty 18
    Eighteenth Dynasty
    Egypt
    ca. 1390-1353 B.C.E.
    Beetle
    Document
    Scarb, Stamps and Sealings
    Purplish blue
    Text
    Hyreoglyphs
    Elizabeth Riefstahl

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