Scarab with Sobek and Wadjet
New Kingdom
Not on view
The base of this scarab shows the head of a crocodile crowned with a headdress consisting of two long and narrow plumes, a pair of horns and uraei on the extremities. In front of the animal are a small papyrus stem and a large cobra. A sun disk is placed at the top and the heb-basin is engraved at the bottom. The crowned crocodile can be identified as the god Sobek, who was associated with water, fertility and – as indicated by the sun disk above – is also connected to the sun god as Sobek-Re. The raised cobra is also placed underneath the sun disk, suggesting that it may represent the goddess Wadjet, the serpent deity associated with the pharaoh and with royal authority. The papyrus stem (wadj in ancient Egyptian) confirms the interpretation of the cobra as Wadjet.
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