The Egyptians believed in the protective properties of jewelry. As an amulet, Egyptian jewelry had a halo of magic and religiosity, extremely important for this civilization.. With both simple materials and precious gems, wearing jewelry in Egypt was a matter of more than status, leadership, and power.
The ancient cultures of the Egyptians, Badari and Naqara, were rooted in the manufacture of jewelry with branches, shells, seeds, stones and bones. Later they evolved, giving them shine with crystalline substances, until ending in the use of semi-precious gems and valuable metals such as gold, when the mines were found in the Eastern Desert and the Nubian Desert.
Gold as common as sand in Egypt. In fact, there was so much that they had no need to market it. Along with this metal, gems such as turquoise, carnelian and lapis lazuli were equally common; besides glass, or back then called falence bath.
In accordance with the artisanal techniques of goldsmithing, Egyptian jewelry demonstrates the use of threading, which consisted of placing different stones within one or several structured threads; chiselling, with which the material was yielding based on the blows of the chisel; and welding, in which red-hot carbon made any material yield.
Among the discoveries made It has been popular to find semi-precious stone inlays, which indicates to be a custom inherited from generation to generation. Even, the jewels accompanied them even in death because they have been the tombs where more treasures have been foundand they are still to be found according to the deciphered hieroglyphics.
Particularly noteworthy are the pectorals used both by Egyptian kings and queens, and by their subjects. They were usually made of gold or chromed metal, but they could even be made with simple materials and not so fancy, which they then painted yellow to take on the appearance of gold and be able to be an object to show off.
To give you an idea of how common jewelery was in ancient Egypt, just tell a particular anecdote about a find made in 1916. A violent storm was raging west of Thebes. In the desert it is common for major floods to occur in addition to sandstorms, as was the case in Thebes. When the phenomenon passed, the villagers managed to find in a residential area called Traiqaaaly a huge treasure dating back to more than 3000 BC.
On the other hand, despite the looting of the tombs of Egyptian kings and nobles, valuable treasures have still been recovered. Such was the case of the tomb of Tutankhamun in 1923. The enormous amount of gold and silver jewelry, despite being considered one of the poorest kings, undoubtedly attracted world attention by recognizing this culture as the ancestors to honor the current goldsmith.