Ancient Egyptian Jewelry Research Paper

Ancient Egyptian Jewelry and American Jewelry Today How did the ancient Egyptians’ jewelry influence the jewelry in the United States today? First we need some incites on the history of the jewelry of the ancient Egyptians. In this essay I hope to inform you on how the Ancient Egyptians’ jewelry influenced the United States’ jewelry and how it is showing the similarities now. In ancient Egypt there was jewelry made out of all sorts of materials and their colors. Gold, copper, and silver were the materials used to create the jewelry. Gold was the metal that is most commonly seen in the upper classes. Copper was available for people of all the social classes, but more common among the regular people. Although silver was used for some jewelry, it wasn’t that available in Egypt. Turquoise, the stone, is very similar to teal since it is a greenish blue. It is easy to notice by looking at the jewelry, turquoise is the color that is used the most out of all the most common materials. Lapis Lazuli is also one of the common gems used. It is a deep blue or
violet color. Feldspar is a stone that can be a variety of colors, such as pink, brown, grey, and white. Jasper is a red or reddish brown stone. Amethyst is a purple/violet color. Emeralds and pearls could also be found in Egypt, so they were used in the jewelry as well. They also used glass to make beads and counterfeit gems if they could not afford the expensive ones. This was commonly seen in the lower classes. There are some common types of jewelry that would be worn throughout Egypt.
The earrings that could be seen, were mostly hoops. There were some that had animal heads or a bit more complex like other objects hanging from the hoop. The bracelet they wore were most commonly cuffs, but they also had bangles. Sort of like bracelets, armbands were also common. They were worn on the bicep part of the arm. The rings were often designed with a gem on top, hieroglyphics carved into the top, or in the shape of an animal such as a snake. Anklets were worn as you would guess, around the ankle. Collar pieces and necklaces were very popular. As Rachel Alexander mentioned in “Facts About Ancient Egyptian Jewelry”, “The most common and iconic ornament of ancient Egypt was the wide collar necklace. The piece was generally made of rows of beads…It stretched over the wearer from the breast to the collar
bones.”(Alexander) Who wore the jewelry in Ancient Egypt? All of the social classes wore jewelry. It was common for both men and women. Rings and earrings were worn by everybody, male or female.(Alexander) Not just the living wore jewelry. The dead were sent to the afterlife with jewelry.(Alexander) This is just like here in the United States. We paint the dead’s’ faces to look like themselves, and put their jewelry on them in the coffin to be put to rest. In the paragraph to come I will talk more about the dead’s jewelry as well. The jewelry was worn and designed for different reasons. The colors worn represent different things. “Turquiose, lapis lazuli and feldspar symbolized good luck, while amethysts represented happiness.”(Katemopoulos, “Facts on Ancient Egypt’s Jewelry, Pyramids & Mummies)