Sunday, April 5, 2009

"This Ancient Talisman..."

...was discovered deep within the Middle Kingdom tomb of
Queen Mar-Gara-Tiri...
the Egyptian Lotus Goddess...
guardian of Water Blossoms which grew profusely
in the ancient river civilizations
of the Near East.
The talisman itself is
in the design of the Udjat Eye...
...and is noted to be one of the most powerful of all talismans in
Ancient Egypt.
The Udjat, once brilliant in color, adorned a fragment of finely woven linen.
This potent charm was used to protect its owner from sickness
and
to provide eternal life in the afterworld.
The linen fragment itself was
found placed within a translucent alabaster carved vessel
which was sealed with a golden cartouche
and bound with
finely woven and intricately plaited papyrus reed fibers.
The reeds were tied with delicate knots
bejeweled in amulets of lapis lazuli, carnelian, and turquoise.
Miniature scrolls written in hieroglyphs
were also found within the alabaster vessel.
They indicated that
Ptah, the Egyptian deity protecting ancient artisans,
had befriended Mar-Gara-Tiri
and became her Muse
showering her with good juju.
It is believed, by many Egyptologists, that vessels like these
were used for watercolor painting
and that the colors painted on the cloth
designated the color palette used by the artist-owner
of the vessel.
Such vessels and their magical contents were buried with female owners
to provide colorful serenity
throughout their journey in the afterlife.
It has been said that whoever gazes upon such an artifact as this will be
inspired in the ways of the ancient artistic ones.
They will be surrounded with a lifetime of
good karma...where Every Day Matters...,
and
that the art produced by each viewer
from that day forward
will have
magical and joyful properties.

"So let it be written...So let it be done."
~Rameses II (Yul Brenner)
The Ten Commandments-1956

Illustration Friday Challenge: Talisman

16 comments:

marianne said...

Just beautiful Margaret!
And all that interesting info, thanks!

BTW You have won in my give away see my bog for details.....

Have a nice Sunday!

Jules said...

Written like a blessing. Thank you Queen Ma-Gara-Tiri! May we all be blessed with your colourful spirit!

soulbrush said...

happy if, dear friend. this is fabadabadoo.

Lisa at Greenbow said...

Interesting information Margaret. The tailisman is beatufiul. Love the shading. It nearly leaps off the page. I hope to feel that "artistic" vibe come through now.

seesue said...

I fELt the power from the moment I saw it. Gouache? Acrylic?

studio lolo said...

whoa, magical piece...and so much info!! Super piece Peg!!

I love the texture the paper provided. Excellent choice. Obviously the magic works for you ;)

RH Carpenter said...

Absolutely gorgeous piece of art and such a lovely backstory for it, too. Thank you so much for sharing this!

Teri said...

Very interesting information for a very interesting and beautiful object! You were in your element here.

joanieART said...

Love it! Thanks for sharing the blessing of the ancient Uadjet.

Julie said...

How perfect...love it on the black paper! Colors are amazing.

Linda said...

Oh wow. This is INCREDIBLE! Love it!

PAK ART said...

You say in your label that it is colored pencil, but what are you drawing on? It looks very textured, almost pebbly.

Caroline said...

Magic indeed - what a colourful, textural illustration!

yoon see said...

What a fabulous piece!
Beautiful and full of mystery talisman ....
Love the cool cold colours with a little red accent all throughout.

3rdEyeMuse said...

the image alone is incredible, but the "lesson" you shared with it ... wow! thank you!!

art said...

Beautifully written.